On Monday, October 16, 2023, while soldiers were engaged in operations against terrorists, the finding was discovered at an illegal refinery site, according to a statement from Army spokesperson Onyema Nwachukwu.
Several crude oil ovens and drums that were filled with stolen crude oil, as well as a pit that was dug out and contained roughly 50,000 liters of crude oil, were also found.
On the same day, 34 Artillery Brigade soldiers engaged in an offensive operation against oil thieves in Imo State's Oguta Local Government Area.
The soldiers removed various objects from the camp, including three reservoirs, a crude oil cooking furnace, and numerous connecting cables and pipelines.
Three mobile phones, a power generation unit, three pumping machines, a CCTV camera put on a tree, a substance that is thought to be cannabis, and a few fetish items were also found.
In the same operation, the army defeated members of the Indigenous People of Biafra and its armed branch, the Eastern Security Network (IPOB/ESN), and took two locally constructed artillery projectile launchers from them.
As troops pounced on the rebel fighters, who fled in disorder and abandoned their camp as they saw troops approaching, they were forced to surrender their artillery weapons and other equipment.
In the course of the raid, one member of the dissident organization who was a fighter was detained, and the troops also found 48 rounds of 7.62 mm NATO ammunition, four mobile phones, one handheld communication radio, and what they believe to be cannabis among other things.