Nigerian Navy said its patrol team, deployed by NNS PATHFINDER, has again arrested two barges at Taraba Jetty in Port Harcourt.

Navy Director of Information, Rear Admiral Christian Ezekobe, said the arrest was due to their alleged involvement in illegal oil bunkering.

Ezekobe said one of the arrested barges had about 70,000 litres of suspected illegally refined AGO, while the other was carrying a mixture of AGO and water.

He added that the patrol team arrested another barge conveying about 200 MT of suspected illegally refined AGO at Owogoro Jetty in Port Harcourt.

In a related development, the patrol teams deployed by NNS DELTA for daily patrols, had continually secured shipping in and out of Warri axis.

In the course of the patrol, the patrol team discovered and destroyed two illegal refineries together with an estimated 120MT of products suspected to be illegally refined AGO, saying another 20MT of stolen crude oil at Bikpoku Creek/Asigbo Creek in Warri South Local Government Area of Delta,” he said.

Ezekobe saidanother patrol team from NNS DELTA discovered and destroyed five illegal refineries with about 100MT of combined products at KO Creek in Warri South-West Local Government of Delta.

The arrests were the seventh in the series of arrests made and the destruction of illegal refineries in the area in the last two days.