The Nigeria Police Force (NPF) will soon take three former officers to court. These officers are accused of stealing a truck filled with 40,000 liters of petrol in Enugu state.
The NPF shared this news on their Twitter page on Sunday, July 7, 2024.
The police mentioned that they caught the suspects after a special operation. During this operation, they also freed the truck driver and his assistant who were kidnapped.
Police Investigation
The police explained that these suspects used to work for the police but were fired. On May 29, 2024, they hijacked a DAF SF Truck with 40,000 liters of petrol on the Ohodo-Opi Road in Igbo-Etiti, Enugu State.
The investigation helped the police find two AK-47 rifles, 105 bullets, and different police uniforms.
The NPF said, “This operation shows how serious we are about stopping crimes, no matter who is involved. The suspects admitted what they did, and the Enugu State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID) is working hard to get back the stolen petrol.
The arrested people are ex-Insp. Otache Egbe, ex-Insp. Abah Solomon, and ex-Sgt. James Mamah. They will face court soon.”
The head of police, IGP Kayode Adeolu Egbetokun, emphasized that the police are committed to working with everyone to fight crime.
This news comes just two weeks after the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) reported 400 cases of oil theft in one week.
Oil theft is a big problem in Nigeria, a country that makes most of its money from oil. This theft hurts the businesses that dig up and sell the oil.
More Insights
- The top oil agency said oil theft happens in many ways: illegal refineries, unauthorized connections, vandalism, oil spills, and secret storage places.
- Newslodge quoted the company saying there were 165 illegal refineries between June 15 and June 21, 2024.
- There were also 69 cases of illegal connections, 15 cases of vandalism, 8 oil spills, 19 secret storage locations, and 74 vessel infractions.
- These incidents were reported by different companies and security agencies.
- In 2021, Nigeria lost 116.46 million liters of petrol worth N18.88 billion to theft, according to a source in the NNPC.