GMM Safety | 2024-03-06 | Case Security |
The Panamanian-flagged bunker vessel “SWEET MIRI” was detained by the Nigerian Navy under charges of oil theft. The detainment of this ship comes as part of a larger operation by the Nigerian Navy named “DELTA SANITY” that has been initiated to apprehend oil thieves.
The vessel was tracked and apprehended with 13 crewmembers onboard, and it was brought back to Lagos. The crew consists of 1 Ghanaian and 12 Nigerian nationals.
The SWEET MIRI is an 1800 DWT bunker vessel owned by a Ghanaian company, and according to officially maintained databases, the ship is managed out of the UAE. The ship is 34 years old and operates in the Gulf of Guinea region.
Rear Admiral MB Hassan, the Flag Officer who commands the Western Naval Command, reported on Saturday, March 2nd, that they had the bunker vessel under observation for some time. He further stated that their suspicions were aroused when the ship turned off its AIS signal on February 25th. The Navy promptly dispatched a gunboat to find and investigate the vessel on the suspicion that it was smuggling oil.
A second vessel was dispatched later in search of the SWEET MIRI, which was finally located nearly 174 nautical miles off of Nigeria. An investigation of the ship revealed that it was transporting around two million liters of crude oil without any approval from relevant authorities. The vessel was ordered to return to Nigeria.
