The police has arrested 13 suspected oil thieves, with 15 trucks loaded with 45,000 liters of diesel each, and two smaller trucks with 12,000 liters each of the product at different locations in Rivers state.
Commander of the Inspector-General of Police’s Special Taskforce on Petroleum and Illegal Bunkering, Usman Kanfani disclosed this in a statement on Wednesday.
Part of his statement reads,
Sequel to the Federal Government and Rivers State Government’s unrelenting pragmatic and sustained fight against illegal bunkering, pipeline vandalism and economic sabotage, the Inspector General of Police’s Special Task Force on Petroleum and illegal Bunkering Force Headquarters Abuja has impounded about 900,00 liters of product suspected to be adulterated Automotive Gas Oil (AGO) and about 30,000 liters of product suspected to be crude oil within Rivers State from February to March, 2022.
About 15 tankers each loaded with about 45,000litres and two short tankers each loaded with about 12,000 liters of petroleum product suspected to be adulterated AGO were impounded by the IGP’s Special Task Force on Petroleum and Illegal Bunkering within the State.
Two container body trucks disguised to be loaded with foodstuff and groceries were also impounded by the Special Taskforce after a thorough stop and search discovered each truck was loaded with about 40,000 liters of petrol product tested to be adulterated AGO.