14th January, 2011
Seven Chinese men have been arrested for oil theft by officers of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, NSCDC, at the Federal Housing Authority, Diamond Estate, Isheri area of Lagos State, South West Nigeria.
P.M.NEWS gathered that they were arrested at Road 20, block 11 of the estate after a thorough search was carried out on their apartment which led to the discovery of seven drums fill with refined fuel scooped from an oil well in the area.
The suspected culprits are Lu Di Sheng, Lu Yun Di, Guan Ping Man, Wang Dong, Cheng Chao, Li Xia Tao and Yang Zhao Ye.
The suspects were arrested around 3.00 pm on Thursday and detained at the NSCDC Headquarters, Alausa, Ikeja, Lagos.
The raid and arrest of the suspects was led by the Assistant Commander General, NSCDC, Lagos Command, Mr. Samuel Onyemachi.
Public Relations Officer, NSCDC, Lagos Command, Mrs. Folashade Vera-Cruz told P.M.NEWS that the suspects would be handed over to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, today for prosecution.
According to her, the suspected vandals were scooping fuel from the oil well in the area and had successfully fill seven drums through a hole dug in their compound where they passed a pipe to connect the oil well and then scoop the fuel.
She stated that the anti-vandal squad of the command acted on a tip off and carried out a survey on the area and discovered that an oil well was in the area.
“While our men were surveying the area, they heard that there was a well filled with PMS and our men decided to go there. On getting to the estate, they used a bowl to fetch the fuel from the well and found out that it was pure PMS.
“They decided to carry out a search in some of the apartments close to the oil well. When they got to the flat where the Chinese live, they saw that it was very dirty. Our men were made to know that the Chinese import generators and as we searched the house, we discovered seven drums filled with pure PMS which led to their arrest,†she explained.
Security Chairman of the estate, Alhaji Yusuf Abdulhadir told P.M.NEWS that he was in the house when he was informed that some Chinese men living in the estate had been arrested.
“For a very long time, we have been having fuel smelling in our estate and residents in the estate have not been able to use their boreholes because of the fuel except those who dunged very dip into the ground.
“Behind our estate is a swamp and last December, there was fire outbreak behind the estate and it took the intervention of NNPC officials and fire servicemen from the Lagos State Government to put out the fire,†he said.
According to him, “70 percent of residents of the estate could not use their boreholes because of the contamination by fuel. These Chinese men living near the swamp dig holes where they scoop fuel.
“When we approached the NNPC about the fuel problem in our estate, they told us that the vandalisation of their pipeline 15 years ago led to oil spill in the area and that it will take some time before the spillage will go,†he stated.
He said it was very common to discover fuel in the area after digging a little, adding that even while digging for gutter, fuel was always discovered.
However, one of the suspects, Yang Zhao Ye told P.M.NEWS that only four of them lived in the house and that the other three were their visitors.
He confessed that fuel was found in drums in their apartment which led to their arrest and detention.
— Kazeem Ugbodaga
