Suspected pirates attack oil workers, NSCDC personnel, kill 3, kidnap 6

Suspected Sea pirates in the early hours of Sunday launched multiple ambushes on some Nigerian Agip Oil Company (NAOC) workers in Okoroma communities of Nembe Local Government Area of Bayelsa State, killing two of them.

The attackers also killed one personnel of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, NSCDC.

Many others on board the ill-fated boat sustained gunshot injuries and the driver, who is an indigene of the Okoroma community, is still declared missing by the locals.

In another ambush that occurred at Ogbokiri-Akassa in Brass Local Government Area, six Nigerian Oil workers who were doing maintenance jobs close to their platform were abducted and taken away.

It was gathered that the oil workers and their security personnel were attacked at about 6am on Sunday while working close to a Manifold in Bayelsa.

The Youth President of the Okoroma Clan, in Nembe LGA, Comrade Tarinyu Joseph, who confirmed the incident to newsmen on phone, said the indigenes of the community have mobilized and recovered the corpses of those killed and have taken those injured to the hospital.

He also confirmed that the boat driver, who he identified as his brother, is still missing.

Some indigenes of the Okoroma community blamed the Nigerian Agip Oil Company (NAOC) for being insensitive to issues of security of the lives of the oil workers.

They claimed the company had refused to hire gunboats to protect oil workers while on official works along the waterways and creeks of the state.

Others blamed the rise in sea pirate attacks and ambush on the refusal of the indigenous security surveillance contractor to pay the youths working with his company and have also allegedly refused to pay the NSCDC personnel attached to the company for the last eight months.

The spokesman of the NSCDC, Bayelsa command, Mr Ogbere Solomon, who confirmed the incident, said only one personnel of the command died in the ambush, while two others who were missing have been found and are currently receiving treatment at a medical facility in Yenagoa, the State capital.

He said: “Yes, our officers were ambushed and attacked by some unknown pirates while on their lawful duty of providing protection to some Agip oil workers close to Obama manifold in Okoroma community of Nembe Local Government. One personnel was killed while the other two that were missing have been found and are responding to treatment.”

(Daily Trust)