By Miriam Humbe
The Nigerian Navy has recorded another operational success under Operation DELTA SENTINEL with the discovery of a concealed cache of suspected illegally refined petroleum products in Rivers State.
In the course of the operations, the Navy also intercepted a vehicle believed to be part of an illicit fuel distribution network.
Director of Naval Information_
Nigerian Navy, Navy Captain Abiodun Folorunsho, disclosed this in a statement signed on Monday.
Acting on credible intelligence, personnel of Nigerian Navy Ship (NNS) SOROH deployed to the Okolomade Community axis of Abua-Odual Local Government Area, where intelligence indicated the movement of suspected illegally refined products within the Orashi Forest corridor.
During the operation, the team intercepted a silver Toyota Camry suspected to be conveying illegally refined Automotive Gas Oil (AGO).
A search of the vehicle led to the recovery of about 17 sacks containing suspected illegally refined AGO.
Further exploitation of the area revealed additional concealed stockpiles hidden under thick vegetation at multiple locations within the forest.
Subsequent ground searches resulted in the recovery of an additional 56 sacks of suspected illegally refined AGO strategically dispersed across the area.
In total, the operation led to the recovery of 73 sacks containing approximately 63,290 litres of suspected illegally refined AGO, as well as the vehicle believed to have been used for transportation.
The discovery highlights the increasing use of forest corridors and concealed storage points by criminal elements seeking to move illegally refined petroleum products from remote locations into distribution channels.
The operation therefore disrupted another critical link in the illicit petroleum value chain.
The recovered products were handled in accordance with extant regulations, while the vehicle was secured for further necessary action.
The Nigerian Navy remains committed to sustaining intelligence-driven operations under Operation DELTA SENTINEL to deny economic saboteurs freedom of action and protect Nigeria’s critical economic resources from criminal exploitation.
