Naval Forces Intercept Vessel Involved In Unlawful Bunkering Operations

The Nigerian Navy Ship, NNS BEECROFT has thwarted illegal bunkering within the Igboelejo community area of Lagos State and seized the boat used for the criminal activity. The Commander, NNS BEECROFT, Commodore Kolawole Oguntuga, disclosed this while addressing newsmen in Lagos at the weekend. Oguntuga said that the feat was made possible in response to intelligence received on Thursday, through the state-of-the-art Maritime Domain Awareness Facility, the Falcon Eye Alignment. He said that the vessel contained 205 drums of a substance suspected to be Premium Motor Spirit and other products. “The patrol team vectored to the specified area successfully apprehended a large blue fibre boat suspected to be engaged in illegal bunkering. “The patrol team acted with precision, securing the vessel and promptly transporting it to the base,” he said. The commander said that regrettably, the perpetrators abandoned the boat and fled upon sighting the patrol team. “However, investigation and necessary actions to ensure appropriate handling of the incident is ongoing,” the NNS BEECROFT boss added. He said that the operation underscored the navy’s unwavering commitment under the leadership of the Chief of Naval Staff, Vice Adm. Emmanuel Ogalla, to ensure safety in the maritime domain. “We will continue to ensure and sustain maritime security and eradicate illicit activities that can trigger fire hazard in coastal communities and within our maritime domain,” he said. Oguntuga appealed to the general public to provide necessary information to nip catastrophic incidents in the bud before they occurred. He added that the navy remained steadfast in its mission to maintain a safe and secure maritime environment for the prosperity of the nation.

Joint Taskforce Destroys IPOB Camp, Shrine In Ebonyi

A joint taskforce comprising Police operatives, soldiers and officials of the Department of State Service (DSS), have stormed a camp at Eke-agbebor Isu, Onicha Local Government Area (LGA) of Ebonyi state, said to belong to the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB). This is contained in a press statement issued in Abakaliki by SP Onome Onovwakpoyeya, the Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO) of the state police command in the state. Onovwakpoyeya noted that the team also destroyed a shrine at the IPOB camp. “On September 13, acting on credible and actionable intelligence, tactical team operatives of the Command in a joint operation with the military and the DSS stormed an IPOB/ESN camp at Eke-Agbebor Isu in Onicha LGA of Ebonyi state. “One of the IPOB/ESN members was shot and fatally wounded, while others escaped with various degrees of bullet wounds. “Two others were, however, arrested. These are Emmanuel Chinedu ‘m’, aka Patho, aged 26, and Paul Ani ‘m’, aka Osah, 38,” the PPRO explained. In another development, Onovwakpoyeya added that another IPOB member was arrested on September 14 by residents of Agba community in Ishielu local government area of the state. She said that the suspect was arrested while trying to flee the community and was handed over to the police. “The Commissioner of police is using this opportunity to appeal to all hospitals, traditional medicine homes, chemists and all Ebonyi residents to report any one seeking medical attention with bullet wound injuries to the nearest police station,” she stated.