Navy finds 132,000 litres of suspected stolen crude in Rivers, 25,000 in Delta
- The Navy says it found 132,000 litres of suspected stolen crude in Bonny, Rivers State, and about 25,000 litres in Delta State.
- It also says 19 suspected drug peddlers were arrested in joint operations with the NDLEA in Warri.
- The Navy is calling for more local manufacturing of military equipment and more investment in research.
The Nigerian Navy says it has uncovered large stockpiles of suspected stolen crude oil in two Niger Delta states, in what it describes as a blow to the illegal petroleum trade.
In Rivers State, the Navy said it found an estimated 132,000 litres of a substance suspected to be stolen crude at Allison community in Bonny Local Government Area. It said the site, uncovered on 22 October 2026, held 10 dugout pits.
Separately, the Navy said three dugout reservoirs holding about 25,000 litres of suspected crude were found at Obodo Omadino in Delta State on 21 October 2026.
Both discoveries were made under Operation Delta Sentinel, according to statements by Navy Captain Abiodun Folorunsho, the naval spokesman and Director of Naval Information. He said the sites and their contents were handled according to established procedures.
Drug arrests in Warri
The Navy also said two joint operations with the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) between 19 and 22 October 2026 led to the arrest of 19 suspected drug peddlers in the Warri area of Delta State.
Captain Folorunsho said recovered items included 10 cards of tramadol, 20 litres of a substance called Monkey Tail, 35 kilogrammes of cannabis and 18 kilogrammes of Colorado. He said the suspects and the items were handed to the NDLEA Warri Area Command for investigation and possible prosecution.
The Navy said crude oil theft and drug distribution are different problems but both threaten the economy and public safety.
Push for local military hardware
At the Nigerian Navy Research and Development Seminar 2026 in Abuja, senior officers argued that Nigeria should build more of its own military equipment.
The Chief of Naval Transformation and Innovation, Rear Admiral Chijioke Onyemaobi, said the rising cost of imported platforms and spare parts, and long delivery times, make local capacity urgent. He said research and development are "the bridge between emerging technologies and our operational needs".
The Chief of the Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Idi Abbas, said the Navy's dockyards and shipyards show growing local capacity. He said criminal networks are using technology to evade detection, so the response must rest on better intelligence and surveillance.
Why it matters: stolen crude and illegal refining rob Nigeria of oil revenue at a time of tight budgets, and the pollution they leave behind damages farmland and creeks that communities depend on.
The Navy urged community leaders, traditional rulers and residents to report crude theft, illegal refining and suspicious storage to the nearest security agency.
What happens next
- The NDLEA Warri Area Command is expected to investigate the 19 suspects and decide on charges.
- The Navy says it will keep running intelligence-led patrols across the Niger Delta.
