The management of Tantita Security Services Nigeria Limited, a Federal Government-contracted oil pipeline surveillance firm has accused the Nigerian Navy of arresting its staff while ensuring that oil thieves fled when the company staff made attempts to arrest them.
The company also said it had evidence to disprove the arrest and continued detention of its personnel over an alleged crude oil theft.
Operatives of the Navy under the Commander of Nigerian Navy Ship, NNS Beecroft, Commodore Kolawole Oguntuga had arrested four Tantita personnel on the waterways in Itolu community, Lekki, in Lagos State.
The Navy said they were investigating the circumstances that led to economic sabotage and how the oil product from Ondo State made its way to the Lagos Sea.
But Tantita in a statement on Saturday explained details of the incident accusing the Navy of sabotage.
It said, “On Monday, August 28, at about 1:30 p.m., a Tantita Security Services patrol team operating in the Ondo State area received credible intelligence that a motorised wooden boat was illegally loading crude oil from an offshore oil well jacket.
“In fact, the same well jacket in OML 110 operated by Cavendish Petroleum Nigeria Limited, where we caught MT TURA II stealing crude oil, a few months ago.
“They dispatched an advance team to find the wooden boat while a backup team comprising Nigeria Civil Defence and Security Corps (NSCDC) component of the government security agencies (GSA) was assembled to follow through on the lead.
“While we cannot name the NSCDC personnel for obvious reasons, they were six and our personnel were eight, not four. The advance team with the help of local fisher folk could determine that the motorised wooden boat was heading toward Lagos and gave hot pursuit.
“Upon noticing the approaching Tantita teams, the crew of the motorised wooden boat abandoned the wooden boat for their speed boat.
“One team of Tantita and NSCDC personnel boarded the wooden boat to secure the evidence while another team gave hot pursuit.
“There is video evidence of the Tantita team together with NSCDC personnel coming alongside the wooden boat, boarding and attempting to secure the boat.
“There is also evidence of the Tantita and GSA team giving chase to the crew of the boat. How then did the Nigerian Navy get involved in this operation?
“The escaping crew of the motorised wooden boat fled toward the Nigerian Navy Forward Operating Base at Ibeju-Lekki, so the Tantita and NSCDC personnel followed in hot pursuit, believing that the criminals would meet their waterloo there.
“They were wrong. Instead of the fleeing crew being arrested, it was the Tantita personnel who came down to apprehend the fleeing crew that was arrested.
“After arresting Tantita personnel and freeing the crew, the Nigerian Navy personnel then went to the motorised wooden boat and drove out the combined Tantita/GSA team trying to keep the boat and the evidence afloat.”
The firm stated that as soon as the men were arrested, the management of Tantita reached out to the Navy for clarification of the situation, and they received feedback saying they were investigating and the men would be released, yet they were still being detained.
Tantita claimed to have gotten the outcome of the Navy’s investigation on the incident saying “There are even more damning revelations, which out of courtesy to the Navy hierarchy and the needs of national security we will not divulge on the pages of a newspaper”.
It, however, noted that “the continued detention by the Nigerian Navy of these five brave, selfless Nigerians who risked their lives on the high seas to protect our commonwealth is a disservice to our nation.
“These family men put their lives at risk for the good of the nation and are now being made to suffer ridicule for doing the right thing. It serves to demoralise good men everywhere who have sought and are seeking to do something to better our nation”, the firm stated.