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The Nigerian Navy has disrupted a suspected militant financing network at Dayspring Island in Cross River.
The Director of Naval information, Capt. Abiodun Folorunsho, revealed this in an operation report on Thursday in Abuja.
He described the bust as another major operational success in the Navy’s ongoing campaign against militancy and criminality within the Calabar waterways.
According to Folorunsho, the operation was conducted by personnel of Nigerian Navy Ship (NNS) VICTORY deployed at the Forward Security Outpost on Dayspring Island.
He said the deployment followed credible intelligence on the activities of suspected militants operating within the Ini Abasi fishing settlement in Akpabuyo Local Government Area.
“Intelligence reports indicated that the location served as a meeting point and operational base for criminal elements who emerged from adjoining creeks to coordinate attacks.
“They would intimidate residents, extort fishermen and maritime transport operators, and also perpetrate other criminal activities within the area,” he said.
He said Navy personnel, acting on the intelligence, conducted a targeted raid on the suspected hideout and carried out a thorough search of the area.
“Although the suspects fled upon sighting the advancing troops, operatives recovered several wraps of suspected cannabis sativa and a handwritten ledger containing names and monetary entries amounting to ₦5.5 million,” he said.
The navy captain also said that preliminary assessment suggested that the recovered document was used to record illegal levies imposed on local fishermen and maritime transport operators operating within the area.
According to him, the proceeds from these extortion activities are believed to have served as a significant source of funding for militant operations and other criminal enterprises within the Dayspring Island axis.
He said that the operation represents a significant step in dismantling the financial and logistical structures that sustain criminal activities within the maritime environment.
“By targeting illicit revenue streams, the Nigerian Navy continues to degrade the operational capability of criminal elements and deny them the resources required to sustain their activities,” he said.
Folorunsho said that naval personnel then engaged community leaders and residents, reassuring them of the Nigerian Navy’s commitment to maintaining a sustained security presence.
He said the Navy assured them of continuous conduction of intelligence-driven operations aimed at restoring lasting peace and security within the waterways.
He said the Navy will continue to disrupt support networks and ensure that legitimate economic activities thrive within the nation’s maritime domain.
