The Nigerian army has revealed details of the operation that led to the arrest of suspected members of the Niger Delta Avengers.
In a statement issued by Brigadier-General Farouk Yahaya, he said the operation was carried out on Saturday, May 28 in Oporoza community in Delta state.
Statement below:
The renewed attacks and sabotage to oil and gas facilities in the Niger Delta Region, particularly in Delta State which have adversely impacted on the crude oil production and the supply of gas been particularly worrisome and of concern to this Brigade and to the Nigerian Army and Operation PULO SHIELD. Several cases of sabotage were recorded in Delta State from 1 January 2016 to date and there were still further warnings of more damages to oil and gas assets and threats to shut down all operations in the sector.
To this end, the Brigade decided to embark on pre-emptive measures to contain and deter the criminals from actualizing their threats within the scope of our operational mandates. Consequently, based on information available to this Brigade, a cordon and search operation of Oporaza Community and environs was ordered. The team arrived the town at about 0140 Hours on 28 May 2016 and cordoned the hideout of the suspected militants and pipeline vandals. A total of 10 persons were arrested during the operation and items recovered include:
Pistol – 1.
Pistol magazines (empty) – 2.
7.62 mm Special Ammunition – 196 Rounds.
9 mm Ammunition – 1 Round.
Live Cartridge – 1 Round.
Bugle – 1.
Hand Held Radio sets – 15.
Detonator 33 cords – 28.
Phones – 18
Sim cards (Glo, MTN and Airtel) – 203
Swim suit – 5
Head lamp – 2
Laptop – 1
Ipad – 2
Camera – 1
Phone chargers – 5
Wrist watches – 3
Wraps of substances suspected to be Indian Hemp – 7
Complimentary cards – 7
Cable wire – 3 pieces.
Speed boat throttle cable – 5 pieces.
Roles of wire – 3
Hand gloves – 6 pairs.
Twenty Three Thousand Naira Cash – N23,000.00
Combat boot – 1 pair.
Dagger – 5 pieces.
UBA Cheque Book – 1.
Our operations that led to these arrests and recoveries were conducted professionally, guided by our mandate, operation orders, code of conduct and rules of engagement. Our operations are strictly targeted against perpetrators of all criminal acts in our area of responsibility and not innocent citizens.
Therefore law abiding citizens are please free to go about their normal, lawful businesses without hindrance as it is indeed part of our mandate to protect live and property and provide enabling environment for law abiding citizens in our area of responsibility.