Suspects were arrested in possession of oil for transformers|Courtesy

Melut County, Upper Nile State (Eye Radio) —Authorities in Upper Nile have arrested 14 individuals suspected of sabotage and theft at Melut oil fields, officials confirmed following a visit to the oil field police base on Sunday.

The arrests, made by the Protection Petroleum Police, come amid ongoing concerns over thefts that have disrupted oil production in the area.

Melut County Commissioner Manyol Ahoch Aguer Malek said the theft of transformer oil this month has forced the shutdown of approximately 24 oil production wells.

He warned that continued incidents could cause severe damage to production across the country’s oil infrastructure.

“Due to the theft of transformer oil this month, it has caused the shutdown and disruption of about 24 oil production wells in the county,” Commissioner Ahoch said.

“If the thefts continue for another month, this will lead to a huge loss. Note that the number of operating wells does not exceed a thousand oil wells. There will be a complete shutdown of the wells due to the saboteurs.”

He added that investigations and legal procedures are underway and that the case will be forwarded to the courts for adjudication.

“We will not stop here only after your sentence, but we will conduct inspection campaigns in the villages near the fields to search for the stolen transformer oil. We will pursue the people who bought the stolen transformer oil from the oil wells, and they will be punished as well,” Ahoch said.

“I will issue a search order, and accordingly, even the collaborators and those who buy and store the oil in their homes will be arrested. I will support you with an additional police force to enhance the inspection operations.”

Major Edward Michael, Petroleum Protection Officer, confirmed that legal procedures are being followed and that the suspects are residents of the area.

“We, as police authorities, asked the field manager and the company’s legal advisor to come to us to discuss the situation,” Major Michael said.

“These arrested individuals are residing here with us in the city, and we are here to protect the facilities. We work according to regulations and laws. Any criminal who is arrested will be placed in prison, and legal procedures will be followed, including investigations and other procedures.”

Major Michael added, “The number of arrested suspects is 14, and the number of confiscated barrels that were in their possession is 14, filled with transformer oil.”

The arrests and investigations reflect ongoing efforts to safeguard South Sudan’s vital oil infrastructure and ensure continuous production.