9 Crude Oil Thieves bag 10- year Jail Term each Without Option of Fine
The Federal High Court sitting in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State, has convicted and sentenced nine out of 19 persons arrested by the Department of State Services (DSS) for crude oil theft. Delivering judgment on Monday, the presiding Judge, Justice Joy Ikpeme, found the convicts guilty on two count-charge of conspiracy and tampering with oil pipeline, […]
A Federal High Court in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State, handed down sentences to nine out of 19 individuals arrested for crude oil theft by the Department of State Services (DSS). Judge Joy Ikpeme declared the convicts guilty of conspiracy and tampering with an oil pipeline, violating Section 1(7) of the Miscellaneous Offences Act. Each of the nine received five years for conspiracy and ten years for pipeline tampering, with no option for a fine, and their sentences to run concurrently.
The suspects were among 10 others apprehended in an intelligence-led operation led by the Nigerian Navy and DSS, who discovered them stealing crude oil from the ASABO-D oil well head in Ibeno Local Government Area. The court's ruling highlights the Navy's ongoing fight against crude oil theft and illegal bunkering, which has significantly impacted Nigeria's oil revenue and environmental degradation in affected communities, according to a security source.
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