Over the weekend, personnel from the Nigerian Navy Forward Operating Base (FOB) in Igbokoda, Ondo State, intercepted and eradicated 15,775 litres of stolen crude oil in the Ilaje axis of the state.
Captain Wasuku Alushi, the Commanding Officer of the base, estimated the value of the seized products to be N13,251,000. The operation was executed by the anti-Crude Oil Theft (COT) patrol team, adhering to the mandate of the joint taskforce Operation Delta Safe on COT.
Commander Humphrey Nnaji, speaking on behalf of Captain Alushi, revealed that the team received intelligence regarding illegal bunkering in the region. Subsequently, a wooden boat, commonly known as a “Cotonou,” loaded with crude oil, was tracked and intercepted.
The interception occurred approximately 12 nautical miles off the coast of the adjoining Ojumole and Obe communities in the Ilaje Local Government Area of Ondo State. Upon spotting naval personnel, the crew abandoned the boat and fled.
Emphasizing the base’s commitment to eliminating the menace of COT and other crimes in Igbokoda and its environs, Commander Nnaji pledged an escalation of surveillance activities within the region.