The Department of State Services (DSS) has arraigned two suspected crude oil thieves before the Magistrate Court in Uyo, the Akwa Ibom State Capital.
The two (2) suspects, along with the wooden boat laden with an unascertained quantity of crude oil, were arraigned before the Magistrate Court in Uyo and remanded in the custody of the Nigerian Correctional Service, Uyo, till September 24, 2026, when the matter is expected to come up for trial at the Federal High Court.
The arraignment is part of the government’s continuous efforts to combat crude oil theft and its attendant economic sabotage in the Niger Delta region, particularly Akwa Ibom State.
The two suspects, Noah Yomi (41 years) and Ojo Igbala Abiodun (42 years), were nabbed while syphoning crude oil from the SEPLAT Utue B Oilfield Jacket into a wooden boat with 17 Gee Pee tanks with the aim of smuggling them for sale in the Republic of Cameroon.
Items recovered from the suspects include five outboard engines, three pumping machines, and three big hoses used in siphoning crude oil from the platform into their boat.
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This arrest followed an intelligence-driven operation led and executed by the Nigerian Navy Ship (NNS) GONGOLA Forward Operating Base (FOB) Ibaka on August 25, 2026.
Our correspondent gathered that the wooden boat was apprehended while siphoning crude oil from the SEPLAT platform, and the two suspects were arrested onboard the boat, while a manhunt continues for five other fleeing crew members who dived into the ocean.
It would be recalled that 19 suspected crude oil thieves arraigned by the DSS in the past few months are currently standing trial at Federal high Court sitting in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State.
