An oil spill from an 8-inch crude delivery pipeline at Oil Mining Lease 29 has polluted Nembe communities around the Santa Barbara River in Bayelsa.

The OML 29 asset is operated by Nembe Exploration and Production Company Limited, formerly Aiteo Eastern Exploration and Production Company Limited.

The News Agency of Nigeria reports that the leak at Tora area in Nembe occurred on October 1, discharging a yet to be ascertained volume of Crude stress into the Santa Barbara River and surrounding areas.

According to a letter to the operator of OML 29 by the legal counsel to the Opu Nembe Kingdom, signed by Mr Iniruo Wills, Managing Partner of Ntephe Smith and Wills, the spill has adversely impacted the people who depend on the Santa Barbara River.

READ ALSO:Neconde’s Oil Spill In Delta Community Causes Outrage

The letter sighted by a NAN Correspondent was in response to an invitation to a Joint Investigation Visit to the spill site to ascertain the cause and volume of the spill.

The oil firm had confirmed the oil spill in a letter Ref: NEPCo/HSE-JIV/2025/04 dated October 5, which proposed a JIV for October 6.

The Nembe communities, in response to the letter, kicked against the October 6 date and opted for October 9.

“We remind you, as you are quite aware of already, that the Community requires and deserves decent notice to assemble a competent JIV team, some of whom usually come from Lagos, Port Harcourt and/or Yenagoa, in order to ensure due diligence and avoid or countervail the perennial practice of manipulating the JIV process and suppressing critical information.

READ ALSO:Farms Destroyed As Oil Spill Ravages Rivers Community

“Please note that our clients demand a thorough and competent investigation of this spill, and adequate management (including swift post-spill assessment and remediation).

“Beyond this spill, for the records, we demand on behalf of our clients again for a top-level engagement (Company, Community Technical Team, and Regulators) for a lasting overall framework to put a stop to this unbearable and continual burden,” the letter read in part.

Numerous oil spills in Bayelsa communities such as in the Obololi community and the Ogboinbiri area had been reported, leading to environmental contamination, loss of livelihoods from fish farms and farmlands, and health concerns, including water scarcity and potential outbreaks.

These recurring incidents, often attributed to equipment failure on pipelines operated by companies like Oando and Shell, have resulted in resident frustration over inadequate cleanup, lack of relief, and the spread of pollution into streams, creeks, and farmlands.

NAN

The Nigeria Police Force (NPF) has confirmed the arrest of 12 suspects involved in the armed robbery incident that led to the death of Arise TV presenter, Somtochukwu Maduagwu.

According to the police, the suspects are: Shamsudeen Hassan ‘m’ from Katsina State, Hassan Isah ‘m’, 22 years from Kaduna, Abubakar Alkamu a.k.a. abba ‘m’, 27 years from Katsina, Sani Sirajo a.k.a. dan borume ‘m’ 20 years from Katsina, Mashkur Jamilu a.k.a. abba ‘m’ 28 years from Kaduna and Suleiman Badamasi a.k.a. dan-sule ‘m’ 21 years from Katsina.

Others are Abdul Salam saleh a.k.a. na-durudu ‘m’ from Katsina, Zaharadeen Muhammad a.k.a. gwaska ‘m’ 23 years from Kaduna, Musa adamu a.k.a. musa hassan ‘m’ 30 years from Katsina, Sumayya Mohammed a.k.a. baby ‘m’ 27 years from Kaduna, Isah Abdulrahman a.k.a. abbati ‘m’, 25 years from Kaduna and Musa Umar a.k.a. small ‘m’ 31 years from Borno.

READ ALSO:ARISE News Broadcaster Killed In Abuja

The police added that shortly after the robbery incident, four (4) of the suspects Shamsudeen Hassan, Alkamu, Sirajo and one other person were apprehended through the tracking of phones stollen from the apartment during the robbery.

“During interrogation, Shamsudeen Hassan confessed that he shot the security guard when he attempted to prevent them from gaining access to the apartment,” the statement read.

“Sani Sirajo confessed to have tried to hold Somtochukwu Christella Maduagwu from falling off the three-storey building but was overwhelmed by her weight.

“Shamsudeen further confessed that he drove the white honda CR-V jeep out of the apartment after the operation. The four suspects admitted that they each received ₦200,000 from the proceeds of the crime.”

READ ALSO:FG Gives Overstaying Foreigners Ultimatum To Regularise Visa

Recovered exhibits include: One fabricated ak-47 rifle, 36 rounds of 9mm live ammunition, one locally made pistol, one pump-action gun, two live cartridges, four mobile phones of the victims, two sharp knives, one cutlass and nine torchlights used during the operation.

The police said: “In continuation of investigations, yesterday, 08/10/2025, acting on a tip-off and actionable digital intelligence also provided by us, the remaining members of the gang, Musa umar a.k.a. small, Hassan Isah and other accomplices involved in the Gishiri robbery were intercepted while enroute to an already planned armed robbery operation scheduled to hold at maitama in the early hours of this morning.”

According to the statement, all suspects have confessed to the crimes while investigation is ongoing.

Barely six years fire gutted Oba Market in Benin, another fire engulfed the popular market late Wednesday night.

The market, which is being reconstructed after abandonment since the June 2020 fire incident, was reportedly set ablaze by a solar panel.

Inspecting the market on Thursday, the Chairman of Oredo Local Government Council, Engr. Gabriel Iduseri, said only one shop was affected by the fire incident.

He said firefighters and security agencies promptly responded to ensure the fire did not spread to other parts of the market.

Iduseri said traders would be stopped from installing solar panels inside the market to prevent future fire outbreaks.

READ ALSO:Traders Protest, Seek Oba’s Intervention As Edo Govt Plans Demolition Of Markets

He said, “We learnt solar panel caused the fire. We are going to stop installation of solar panels and check all the electrical wiring in the market.

“I want to assure that we will support the affected trader to get back to business. There is no much damage. No life was lost. Oredo local government was here and we put measures in place to prevent thieves.”

The affected trader was said to have collapsed last night.