The Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, NSCDC, Lagos State Command on Tuesday paraded three suspected vandals who were arrested for engaging in oil bunkering around the creeks in the FESTAC Town area of the state.
The suspects, 26-year-old Sterling Longlife, Johnson Igadu and Daniel Poku, both aged 25, alleged that Military officials colluded with them in the operation.
They said they had full assurance they would not be caught since they carried out the operation with safety assurances from some soldiers.
The kingpin of the syndicate simply identified as Soji, who is at large, reportedly engaged the suspects to convey 10 barrels of fuel in a boat from 7th Avenue, FESTAC Town, to a place called Ghana village.
The suspects said Soji told them he had settled the military men monitoring the waterways in the area, so they had no need to worry.
According to Igadu, who hails from Warri, Delta State, Poku, had allegedly spoken with a soldier on the phone who assured them of safety.
He said, “I came to Lagos two months ago. Soji called us to bring 10 barrels of fuel from a creek on 7th Avenue, FESTAC Town. We went there to carry the fuel to Ghana village. We knew there were soldiers in the area, but he said he had already paid them and that we should not be afraid.
“He sent Poku’s number to one of the soldiers to call us when it was safe to get the fuel. The soldier called Poku and said we should come to carry the fuel. That was why we got the confidence to move.
“We carried the fuel around 12.30am and left in their presence. We passed the first two checkpoints. The soldiers there checked the fuel and told us to go.
“When we got to the third checkpoint, we heard gunshots. We fled the boat and escaped through the waterways. We ran to a man and begged him to allow us pass the night at his house. But he alerted the vigilantes around the area who handed us over to the police.
“The police handed us over to the army and we were later transferred to the NSCDC,” the 25-year-old added.
His gang members also averred that they were backed by soldiers and wondered why their operation was unsuccessful.
But the Public Relations Officer of the 81 Division, Lt.-Col. Kingsley Samuel, refuted the suspects’ claims, saying they could have mistaken the officers of other forces for soldiers.
According to him, “That is an allegation from suspects; it is spurious. Can they identify the soldiers? The Nigerian Army, the Air Force and the Navy wear the same camouflage.
“There is uniformity in the camouflage, so you can’t tell who is a soldier, an air force officer or a naval officer.
“Operation MESSA is not made up of soldiers alone. We cannot speak on the allegation now because we don’t know those paraded and we were not informed of the parade.”
Confirming the arrest, the state NSCDC Commandant, Tajudeen Balogun, said the suspects would be charged to court after investigation.
Balogun said the corps would continue to track down pipeline vandals sabotaging the country’s economy.
He said, “About 2,500 litres of petrol was recovered from the suspects. Investigation is ongoing.
“We will charge them to court at the end of our investigation,” the Commandant added.
Comentarios