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Lagos State PRO, DSP Ngozi Braide
By Chiemelie Ezeobi
The operatives of the Inspector General of Police Special Task Force on Anti-Pipeline Vandalism, has arrested two Indians and three other suspects for pipeline vandalism.
It was gathered that the task force arrested the suspects at Osogbo in Osun State shortly after the Indians took delivery of two truck load of suspected stolen crude oil from Nigerians National Petroleum Corporation(NNPC) pipeline.
The Indian suspects were identified as the Managing Director, Prism SteeL Mill Limited, Engineer Ashok Agarwal and the Chief Security Officer of the company, Mr. Kamal Shema.
Others are Fatai Afolabi, Emmanuel Igbokwe and Tukur Mohammed who were alleged to be the suppliers of the stolen products.
Asides the two truckload of suspected stolen petroleum products, the police also impounded two trucks with registration number XQ522APP and XV102KSF.
Confirming the arrests, the Officer-in-Charge of the task force, Assistant Commissioner of Police, Friday Ibadin, said the arrests were made based on intelligence report which revealed that some vandals were transporting stolen crude oil to their buyer in Osun state.
He said, “We got a tip off that vandals had resumed its activities along Okene in Ondo state from the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation pipeline.
"Policemen led by Ore Sector Commander, DSP Xpress Omoigui, were sent to the area to ensure regular patrol. It was during one of the patrol session that they trailed some trucks to Prism Steel company based on Osun state.
“As soon as we confirmed that the products were actually sold to the company our detectives stormed the company and arrested the Director, Engineer Agarwal and his accomplice Kamal Shema. They would soon be charged to court at the end of our investigation.”
On the allegation that some of the petrol stations and big companies patronise these vandals with impunity, ACP Ibadin said the task force is taking concrete steps to curb that.
One of the suspects, 66 year-old Agarwal, said he was forced to patronise the road sellers since NNPC could not meet up with the quantity they need to run their business.
He said, “We established this business to help the country to have enough steel for its use. In the production of steel we make use of crude oil which we all know as black oil.
"We are one of the major suppliers of this steel in Nigeria and if we stop production for want of raw material their might be scarcity. We had no other choice but to patronize these ones.
"My only mistake was that we never took time to confirm if they were stolen. We are big employer of labour and would beg government to forgive us.”
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