Economic and Finanacial Crime Commission (EFCC) to prosecute 12 oil thieves in the Niger Delta.

- The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission is set to prosecute 12 oil thieves arrested in Port Harcourt, River state.

- The 12 oil thieves were arrested by the Nigerian Navy in Port Harcourt and handed over to the anti-graft agency.

- At the end of investigation, the commission will arraign them in court.

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) is to prosecute 12 suspected oil thieves who were arrested and handed over to the commission by the Nigerian Navy in Port Harcourt, Rivers state.

Some of the arrested oil thieves handed over to EFCC by the Nigerian Navy.

This even as the Navy in Delta destroyed 40 illegal oil refineries and arrested three suspects in the Jones Creek in Warri south local government area of Delta state.

 They were arrested on Thursday following a major raid where more than 40 illegal refineries contain over one million metric tons of stolen crude were discovered by the Navy.

The 12 oil thieves arrested in Port Harcourt were caught with a vessel MV OMISAN 1 with registration number IMO 7216244, an unnamed barge and two wooden boats from the Nigerian Navy Ship PathFinder Naval Base, Rumuolumeni in Port Harcourt.

They were handed over to the commission by Naval Commander, Commodore W.O. kayoda.

He told the commission that the suspected oil thieves were arrested on February 6, 2017 by the Navy patrol team who were deployed for anti-crude oil theft and illegal bunkering operations around Taraba jetty, Borokiri in Port Harocurt.

Vessels containing oil.

The suspects, who were crew members of MV OMISAN 1 and the wooden boat were arrested in the process of transshipping an estimated 60,000 litres of suspected illegally refined Automated Gas Oil, AGO, from the wooden boat to MV OMISAN 1.

In a similar development, on February 7, 2017, the patrol team also intercepted a barge of laden with an extimated 100,000 litres of products suspected to be AGO, and another wooden boat laden with 60,000 litres of products suspected to be illegally refined AGO around Isaka axis of the state.

The suspects aboard MV OMISAN 1 are: Captain Benjamio Igiogio; Engineer Samuel Ogunfemi; Jakpa Eyituoyo; Johnson Dudu; Ogunkalu Taiwo; Toju Oko-Otiuroh; Desmond Edafe Unuarhe; Ibiye Ngiania; Sylvanus Ikorawi J; Ayadi Abiola, Chibueze Nwali and Imeh Brown.

The suspects will be arraigned in court as soon as investigation is completed.