A vessel MT Tura II impounded over alleged oil theft was set ablaze yesterday on the Warri River by the military with assistance from the Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps, NSCDC.

Men of the NSCDC and some hands from Tantita security services Nigeria Limited, a private security firm engaged by the government to combat illegal bunkering activities mounted the vessel pulling out all the tubes before setting it on fire.

Captain Warredi Enisuoh, Executive Director of Technical and Operation Tantita security services who took time to explain the process to newsmen said setting the vessel on fire was to enable a military jet that would fly over detonating it with explosives to track the location with the thick smoke from the vessel on air.

Barely two hours later a military combat jet hovered around the area with the vessel as a target. It fired at the vessel about seven times before retreating.

At press time, the vessel was still smouldering.

It would be recalled that Tantita security services in collaboration with the army, Navy and other security agencies paraded the vessel on Monday at Oporoza waterways in Warri southwest local government area, saying it was arrested a few days ago off the coast of Excravos, precisely at a border point on the waters between Delta and Ondo state with about 150,000 litres of illegal crude oil.

Briefing journalists onboard the vessel that Monday, Commander Operation Delta Safe, Rear Admiral Ferreira Olusegun said assured that there would be no hiding place for oil thieves in the country.

He was flanked by the Commander NNS Delta, Commodore Chindo Yahaya, Executive Director Technical and Operation Tantita security services Nigeria limited , Captain Warredi Enisuoh, representatives from the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation limited, NNPCLtd, and Nigerian Security and Civil Defence corps , NSCDC,