DSS Foils Planned Oil Tanker Seizure, Nabs Suspected Pirates in Bayelsa

Story: written by Daniel January 26,2026
Operatives of the Department of State Services (DSS) have disrupted an alleged plan to hijack a crude oil–carrying vessel in the Gulf of Guinea, arresting two suspected members of a maritime piracy ring in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State.

Security sources revealed that the suspects were taken into custody on Saturday while reportedly concluding arrangements for the operation. The arrest followed weeks of intelligence gathering and surveillance by DSS operatives.

The suspects were apprehended at a hotel along Tenacious Street in the Edepie area of Yenagoa. They were identified as 38-year-old Geoffrey Atizara from Aleibiri in Ekeremor Local Government Area of Bayelsa State, and 42-year-old Divine Kelechi Unueze, a native of Nekede in Owerri, Imo State.

Preliminary intelligence, supported by confessional statements, indicated that the duo allegedly belonged to a larger, well-coordinated criminal network planning to attack a vessel at sea, kidnap its crew, and divert crude oil cargo. Unueze was said to be the financier, handling funding and logistics, while Atizara allegedly oversaw the recruitment of additional pirates.

According to security officials, the suspects admitted links to a high-profile syndicate operating across the South-South and South-East regions, with involvement in sea piracy and kidnapping for ransom. The arrests are believed to have significantly weakened the group’s operations, given the scale of planning and resources reportedly mobilised.

Security sources noted that had the plot succeeded, it could have posed a serious threat to maritime safety in the oil-rich Gulf of Guinea. They added that the DSS has intensified intelligence-led operations in collaboration with the Nigerian Navy and other security agencies to curb maritime crime in the region.

Recent joint operations have reportedly led to the interception of pirate boats and the rescue of crew members from hijacked vessels off the coasts of Bayelsa and Delta states. The latest arrests mark another step in ongoing efforts to dismantle criminal networks and secure Nigeria’s territorial waters and offshore assets.

The development comes just days after the DSS, working with other security agencies and forest guards, rescued kidnapped pastors and other victims in Kaduna and Borno states.