A statement by Operation Pulo Shield, the military task force deployed to protect oil installations in the Niger Delta, confirms that suspected vandals responsibility for bombing crude and gas pipelines in Escravos, Delta State, and Agip facility in Brass, Bayelsa State, have been arrested and are being interrogated.
The suspected vandals are believed to be behind the Escravos pipelines that led to the shut of Warri and Port Harcourt refineries, which led to recent cutting down of gas supply to power plants in the country.
Also, they are suspected to have orchestrated the Agip blast on January 28 which affected the company’s crude oil output, leading to the output crashing to 16,000 barrels per day from 40,000.
The Thursday statement by spokesman of the task force, Colonel Isa Ado, read in part: “Operation Pulo Shield remains determined to track and arrest perpetrators of the recent multiple attacks and bombing of some oil pipelines and installations across the Niger Delta region.
“Some suspects were arrested and currently undergoing thorough preliminary investigation to ascertain their degree of involvement before handing them over to prosecuting agencies, while effort is on to track and arrest fleeing vandals.
“The success of the arrest was due to highly intensified patrols and cordon and search on the waterways, creeks and communities by the task force.
“It is in line with the directives of the commander of Operation Pulo Shield, Major-General Alani Gafar Okunlola, to apprehend those behind the criminal act.”
In the statement, Ado appealed to the residents of the area to be forthcoming with information that can help the task force to curb illegal activities in the area.