Thursday, September 24, 2026 - The Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, Federal Capital Territory Command, has arrested three suspects over the alleged vandalism of an NNPC petroleum pipeline in Dafa, Kwali Area Council, Abuja.
The FCT Commandant of the NSCDC, Olusola Odumosu, disclosed
this while addressing journalists at the corps’ Kwali Divisional Office on
Wednesday.
Odumosu said the arrests followed days of intelligence-led
surveillance by the command’s tactical team, supported by members of a local
vigilante group.
He said operatives had received credible intelligence about
suspected vandalism activities along the pipeline Right of Way in the area and
subsequently commenced surveillance of the location.
According to him, the suspects initially fled after sighting
the operatives, abandoning sections of the pipeline they had allegedly cut.
He said the suspects returned to the area on September 20,
2026, to retrieve the abandoned pipe sections and load them into a truck.
“NSCDC operatives on surveillance, supported by members of
the vigilante group, swiftly moved in and arrested three of the suspects, while
some other members of the gang reportedly escaped into the surrounding bush,”
Odumosu said.
The commandant identified the suspects as Maitama Inuwa, 30;
Yahuza Danlami, 32; and Yasir Abdulrahman, 26.
He said Inuwa, from Rafin Dadi in the Lere Local Government
Area of Kaduna State, was the driver of the truck with registration number MAK
159 XA (Niger), allegedly used to convey the vandalised pipes.
Danlami, from Anguwan Kataf, Mariri, Lere Local Government
Area of Kaduna State, was identified as the truck’s motor boy, while
Abdulrahman, from Gajiri Village, Suleja, Niger State, was described as a
representative of the alleged buyers of the vandalised pipes.
Odumosu said preliminary investigations had also identified
four other persons allegedly connected with the operation, adding that they
were currently at large.
He said the investigation indicated the possible existence
of an organised criminal network involved in the vandalism, transportation and
alleged illicit sale of components removed from the pipeline right-of-way.
The NSCDC commandant said operatives recovered one long
commercial truck loaded with vandalised NNPC petroleum pipes and 17 pieces of
the pipes from the scene.
Explaining the alleged modus operandi of the suspects,
Odumosu said the vandals targeted remote and forested areas where petroleum
pipelines pass through the FCT.
“These vandals operate in remote and forested areas where
petroleum pipelines transit through the FCT. When it is dark, they deliberately
dig up and cut these high-pressure pipelines into sizeable pieces for easy
loading into their trucks,” he said.
He warned that pipeline vandalism posed serious risks to
lives and the environment, apart from causing economic losses to the country.
“This reckless activity not only causes massive economic
losses to the country but also poses an immediate risk of catastrophic
explosions and environmental degradation,” he said.
Odumosu said the command would extend its investigation to
identify the alleged financiers and end-buyers of the vandalised pipeline
components.
“The command will work tirelessly to identify the
end-buyers, the sponsors bankrolling this sabotage and subsequently enforce the
full weight of the Miscellaneous Offences Act,” he said.
He also appealed to residents living along pipeline
corridors to report suspicious activities, including unusual digging and
movement of trucks in remote areas, to the NSCDC.
“Do not shield these economic saboteurs; report any
suspicious digging or unusual movement of trucks in remote areas to the NSCDC
immediately. When you see something, please say something, and the NSCDC will
do something,” he said.
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