Reported by: Ijeoma G | Edited by: Oravbiere Osayomore Promise.
The Nigerian Navy has dealt a heavy blow to maritime criminal networks with the interception of a foreign-flagged tanker found to be carrying stolen crude oil valued at more than N660 million, arresting all 12 crew members on board in a major operation under the newly launched Operation Delta Sentinel. The vessel, MT FILIA (IMO No. 8662684), sailing under the flag of São Tomé and Príncipe, was arrested on Thursday, July 23, 2026, within the offshore oil terminal in Akwa Ibom State by personnel of the Eastern Naval Command.
Briefing journalists on Tuesday, July 28, 2026, at the premises of Nigerian Navy Ship Victory in Calabar, the Command Operations Officer, Commodore Abubakar Umar, disclosed that the arrest followed credible intelligence generated through the Navy’s surveillance assets. Preliminary investigations revealed that the tanker had loitered within the vicinity of the Utue Offshore Oil Terminal for more than seven days, apparently waiting for an opportunity to illegally access crude oil facilities. The vessel subsequently proceeded to one of the oil jackets, where it engaged in the suspected illegal loading of crude oil.
In a dramatic turn of events, at approximately 4:00 a.m. on July 23, MT FILIA departed the offshore oil terminal and headed seaward. A Nigerian Navy patrol boat immediately pursued and intercepted the vessel. On sighting the approaching naval ship, the crew began discharging the stolen crude into the sea in a desperate attempt to destroy evidence, thereby causing significant maritime pollution. Subsequent investigation and the captain’s confession confirmed that the vessel had loaded approximately 650 metric tonnes of crude oil at the terminal, with an estimated value of over N660 million.
Commodore Umar stated that the arrest demonstrates the Nigerian Navy’s unwavering commitment to safeguarding the nation’s maritime resources and protecting critical oil and gas infrastructure from economic saboteurs. He explained that Operation Delta Sentinel, launched in January 2026 by the Chief of the Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Idi Abbas, was designed to strengthen maritime security through technology-driven surveillance, improved maritime domain awareness, and enhanced inter-agency collaboration. The operation targets crude oil theft, illegal bunkering, sea robbery, kidnapping, and other maritime crimes within Nigeria’s territorial waters and Exclusive Economic Zone.
The Flag Officer Commanding Eastern Naval Command, Rear Admiral Chiedozie Okehie, who also paraded the vessel and suspects on Tuesday, used the opportunity to demand judicial reforms to accelerate the prosecution of vessels and suspects arrested for crude oil theft. He lamented that prolonged trials are undermining the Navy’s efforts, revealing that a vessel arrested since 2022 is still undergoing trial. “There is one thing to launch an operation and another thing to implement it. What we have today is the strategic, operational and tactical will to ensure the success of Operation Delta Sentinel,” Okehie said. He decried the long stay of seized vessels in custody due to slow court processes, noting that the Navy bears enormous administrative and financial burdens maintaining these vessels while cases drag on. On MT Filia, he noted: “The vessel is foreign-flagged but crewed by Nigerians, demonstrating the reach of these criminal networks”.
The Navy’s Director of Naval Information, Navy Captain Abiodun Folorunsho, in a separate statement, confirmed that preliminary investigations revealed the vessel was carrying an estimated 32.82 metric tonnes of fuel oil and 650 metric tonnes of crude oil without the requisite documentation or lawful authorisation. The vessel, its 12-member crew, and the recovered cargo have been taken into custody for further investigation and possible prosecution in accordance with extant laws.
This latest success comes amid an upsurge in national crude oil production to 1.89 million barrels per day in July 2026, surpassing Nigeria’s OPEC production quota. Between April and June 2026 alone, Operation Delta Sentinel recovered more than 4.7 million litres of petroleum products, deactivated over 58 illegal refining sites, destroyed more than 239 dugout pits and 13 refining ovens, and arrested over 91 suspects connected to crude oil theft. The Chief of Naval Staff commended the professionalism, vigilance, and commitment of the personnel involved and reaffirmed that the service remained resolute in its determination to eliminate crude oil theft, pipeline vandalism, and other forms of maritime criminality that undermine Nigeria’s economic prosperity and national security.
Commodore Umar warned individuals and criminal syndicates involved in crude oil theft and other maritime offences to desist, stressing that the Navy remained determined to bring perpetrators to justice. “As for the arrested vessel and suspects, proper investigation has been initiated, and they will be made to face the full wrath of the law,” he said. He also appealed to members of the public, security agencies, and stakeholders in the oil and gas industry to continue providing credible information that would assist the Navy in protecting Nigeria’s maritime resources and sustaining the gains recorded in the fight against crude oil theft. With the arrest of MT FILIA and its 12 crew members, the Nigerian Navy has once again demonstrated that the long arm of the law will eventually catch up with those who seek to plunder the nation’s oil wealth, even as the battle to secure Nigeria’s maritime domain continues.
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