7 expatriates kidnapped in Bayelsa

Yenagoa – Six Russians and an Estonian were reportedly kidnapped on board a vessel in the early hours of yesterday by unknown gunmen, suspected to be sea pirates, along the waterways of Bayelsa and Delta states on the Atlantic fringe.

The kidnapped expatriates, it was learnt, were part of a fifteen-member crew working for a French firm, Bourbon International Oil, when they came under attack along the Pennington River.

Eight other workers on board the attacked vessel, known as Bourbon Liberty 249, were said to have arrived the Nigerian Port at Onne.

The vessel is believed to be sailing from the Pennington Offshore Terminal situated 16 miles SW of the entrance to the Fishtown River.

Contacted, the Joint Task Force in the Niger Delta, codenamed Operation Pulo Shield, confirmed the incident, saying all its operational bases had been put on red alert to track down the perpetrators of the kidnappers.

Spokesman of the task force, Lt. Col.Oyeama Nwachukwu, said though the identity of the kidnapped expatriates could not be ascertained, a deployment of naval elements and military facilities along the Niger Delta had been put on red alert and have started combing the area for the abductors.

He said: ”I can confirm to you that some unknwon gunmen attacked a vessel and abducted seven persons made up of six Russians and one Estonian. We have deployed our naval elements to comb the area and track down the kidnappers. We have also alerted all operational bases.”