… Denies oil thieves N4b worth of crude oil
The military says not less than 814 terrorists were neutralised and 1,326 criminals arrested between June and August 2023 in the six geopolitical zones of the country in the ongoing fight against insurgency and criminals.
Director of Defence Media Operations, Major General Edward Buba disclosed this on Thursday while reviewing the counter insurgency and counter terrorism operations of the armed forces across the country in the last 3 months operations .
The military also arrested 42 kidnappers, 231 collaborators, 33 armed robbers, 80 cattle rustlers, 325 militias, 27 rails vandals, 73 gunrunners, 191 suspected oil thieves and rescued 721 kidnapped hostages. Additionally, 4,560 terrorist and their families surrendered to troops, he further revealed.
“We arrested 42 kidnappers, 231 collaborators, 33 armed robbers, 80 cattle rustlers, 325 militias, 27 rails vandals, 73 gunrunners, 191 suspected oil thieves and rescued 721 kidnapped hostages. Additionally, 4,560 terrorists and their families surrendered to troops.”
Troops recovered a total number of 501 weapons, 3,577 livestock, 3,269 assorted kinds of ammunition and 674 other equipment.
“The breakdown of these arms and ammunition is as follows; 117 AK47 rifle, one AK49 rifle, 5 revolver, 28 fabricated rifles, 11 fabricated pistols, 57 dane guns, 23 pistols, 24 pump action guns, 3 FN rifles, 3 GPMGs, one double barrel gun, one barreta pistol, one G3 rifle, 2 HK21 rifles one IED, 123 rounds of 7.62mm NATO, 2,008 rounds of 7.62mm special, 30 rounds of 7.62mm x 39mm, 512 rounds of 7.62mm x 54mm, 190 rounds of 5.5mm, 39 rounds of 9mm, 29 rounds of PKM, and 19 cartridges.”
“Troops equally recovered: one RPG tube, 3 hand grenades, one locally made hand grenade, one locally made bomb, 2 rifle butts, one AK47 barrel, one GMPG barrel, 2 MG links, 98 AK47 magazines, 2 G3 magazines, 2 FN magazines, 2 PKT magazines, 2 LMG magazines, 2 tear gas launchers, one bullet proof vest, 49 vehicles, 213 motorcycles, 48 bicycles, 69 mobile phones, 5 boafeng radios, 4 woodland camouflages, 2 boots, 74 knives, 71 handsets, 11 laptops, 13 steering rods and pumps, 45 machetes and 25 jack knives.
Other items recovered by troops include 213 motorcycle, 69 mobile phones, one bicycle, 10 machete and a pair of camouflage.
Troops operations in South South geopolitical zone within the period resulted in the arrest of the following; 6,652,250 litres of stolen crude oil, 3,558,325 litres of illegally refined AGO, 288,650 litres of DPK and 65,600 PMS. All amounting to an estimated sum of N4 billion denied to the oil thieves.
Major General Buba said the armed forces will continue to apply strong military pressure on groups undermining the national security of the country adding that “the terrorists and their cohorts cannot win in the face of ongoing military pressure against them.”
He said the terrorists and their cohorts are encouraged to drop their arms and rejoin society to provide a better life for themselves and their children as “they risk annihilation if they fail to do so.”
Military operations spokesman assured the public that the military is with them working tirelessly to ensure your safety and security. “Importantly, the trust and cooperation from supportive groups being witnessed today is unprecedented. The inputs from these groups is making a difference in our operations. Citizens are encouraged to Know Something, Say Something and we will do something about it.”