Nigerian
Navy authorities in Warri, Delta, on Wednesday said navy personnel in the area
had impounded 26 high speed boats in the area.
The
Operations Officer of NNS DELTA, Warri, Commander Shehu Tasiu, disclosed this
to newsmen while displaying the boats at the Naval Base, Warri.
Tasiu said
that the boats were apprehended on Tuesday at various jetties in the area.
He said the
action was in line with the decision of the authorities to rid the waterways of
criminalities, including crude oil theft and piracy.
A Joint Task
Force in January, banned the use of 200 horsepower and above outboard engines
on boats as measure to curtail crime in the creeks.
''The NNS
DELTA at various jetties and take-off points in Warri on Tuesday arrested 26
speed boats, fitted with 200 or more horsepower engines and docked them at the
Warri naval base.
''Those who
engaged in criminal activities in the waterways relied on the high speed
outboard engines to ease their escape.
It would be
recalled that in January, after the pipeline explosion of Jan. 14 and 15, the
ban on the use of high capacity boat engines was reiterated by the headquarters
of the Joint Task Force,'' he said.
Tasiu said
that the ban had been in force since 2007/2008 in the heat of the Niger Delta
crisis.
''The
reasons why this is being enforced now is that recently, the crimes in the
Warri waterways have been crude oil theft, hijacking of vessels and other
boats.
''We also
have issues of pipeline vandalism and these criminals use these high speed
boats to perpetrate these crimes,'' he said.
Credit: NAN
Credit: NAN
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