Oil Theft: Task Force Arrests Four, Seizes Vessel Linked to Delta Jetty

Wale Igbintade

Four suspected oil thieves have been arrested in Delta State following the interception of a vessel, MT Thor, allegedly involved in the illegal handling of crude oil, authorities have confirmed.

The suspects were handed over alongside the seized vessel at Koko Port by Tantita Security Services Limited (TSSNL), a Federal Government contractor for pipeline surveillance, to the Inter-Agency Task Force on Petroleum Product Theft.

Speaking during the handover, Tantita’s Executive Director of Operations, Captain Warredi Enisouh, said the suspects were apprehended aboard MT Thor with petroleum products believed to have been illegally sourced.

A situation report issued by the Head of Investigation of the Task Force’s Special Prosecution Team, CSP Omar Sini, disclosed that the vessel was intercepted on 15 December 2025 along the Kokpo–Excravos axis of Delta State following intelligence provided by Tantita.

According to investigators, MT Thor was allegedly escorted by personnel of the Police Marine Unit, Delta State, who claimed they were acting on directives from the Force Intelligence Department (FID), Abuja—an assertion now under investigation.

Preliminary findings linked the vessel to a jetty operated by Ebenco Global Services Limited. Authorities said relevant documents, including court orders submitted by the jetty’s owner, identified as Mr. Ebenezer, are currently being reviewed.

CSP Sini said a joint investigation team comprising officers of the Task Force, Tantita, and the Nigeria Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) conducted inspections and obtained product samples at the jetty between 16 and 17 December 2025 for laboratory analysis.

He reaffirmed the Federal Government’s resolve to dismantle crude oil theft syndicates in the Niger Delta, noting that sustained enforcement had contributed to an increase in Nigeria’s crude oil output from about 1.4 million to 1.8 million barrels per day.

However, he expressed concern that weak judicial sanctions in some oil theft cases undermine deterrence, despite statutory provisions allowing for life imprisonment.