The Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), said its operatives have uncovered two illegal bunkering sites in Rivers.

The NSCDC spokesman, Babawale Afolabi, disclosed this in a statement in Abuja on Monday.

He disclosed that the sites are at Odagwa-Owaza Riverside boundaries of Rivers and Abia, and Etche Local Government Area of Rivers.

Afolabi stated that the Commandant-General's Special Intelligence Squad (CGsSIS) discovered the illegal connections following an intelligence report.

"The illegal connections were made to syphon oil from wellheads using huge hoses laid and buried underground in a thick forest at Odagwa/Owaza Riverside boundaries of Rivers and Abia.

"And another site at Odagwa in Etche area of Rivers where vandals tampered with valves of the manifold and siphoned crude at Imo River 2, oil and gas flow station operated by the Nigerian Petroleum Development Commission (NPDC).

"During the operation, we observed that the first local refining site had been earlier destroyed by security agencies but was later rebuilt," he said.

He said some of the exhibits recovered were one new yellow colour Robin EY 20 Pumping machine, blue colour heavy-duty hoses, over 5,000 litres of locally refined petroleum products in cellophane bags and reservoir.

Also recovered were about 10,000 litres of kerosene (AGO) stored in a cooking oven, two shovels and spades, buckets, and four flash headlights.