SITREP 4: BAYELSA TAKES THE LEAD; 6 AGIP HOSTAGES

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 LAGOS 000313

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

STATE FOR AF/W, INR/AA, DS/IP/AF, DS/ICI/PII, DS/DSS/OSAC,
CA/OCS/ACS/AF FOR MESARITI
ZAGREB FOR AMBASSADOR BRADTKE
WARSAW FOR LISA PIASCIK
CIUDAD JUAREZ FOR DONNA BLAIR
ISTANBUL FOR TASHAWNA SMITH
SAO PAULO FOR ANDREW WITHERSPOON
DOE FOR GPERSON, CAROLYN GAY
TREASURY FOR ASEVERENS, SRENENDER, DFIELDS
COMMERCE FOR KBURRESS
STATE PASS USTR FOR ASST USTR FLISER
STATE PASS TRANSPORTATION FOR MARAD
STATE PASS OPIC FOR ZHAN AND MSTUCKART
STATE PASS TDA FOR NCABOT
STATE PASS EXIM FOR JRICHTER
STATE PASS USAID FOR GWEYNAND AND SLAWAETZ

E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/04/2017
TAGS: ASEC CASC EPET KDEM NI PGOV PREL
SUBJECT: SITREP 4: BAYELSA TAKES THE LEAD; 6 AGIP HOSTAGES
RELEASED

REF: A. LAGOS 309


B. LAGOS 307

C. LAGOS 303

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Classified By: Consul General Brian L. Browne for reasons 1.4 (B) and (
D)


1. (C) Summary: American citizen John Stapleton, four
Italians and one Croatian remain hostages after being
abducted on May 1. Chevron is following Bayelsa State
Government's lead in securing the hostages release and has
passed to the government Stapleton's medication. Bayelsa
Secretary to the State Government Godknows Igali said he has

SIPDIS
been in contact with kidnappers and they were amenable to
accepting the medication. The State Security Service (SSS)
in Bayelsa purportedly has an "inside man" who has identified
the kidnappers and their location; this individual is
expected to deliver Stapleton's medication and take the
hostages' pictures on May 4. Six hostages kidnapped May 3
working for Agip on a vessel near Brass were released later
that day. End Summary.

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Hostage Meds Passed to Bayelsa Government
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2. (C) American citizen John Stapleton, four Italian
nationals and one Croatian begin their fourth day as
hostages. Stapleton's medication has been passed to the
Bayelsa State Government. Bayelsa Secretary to the State
Government Igali told us he was finalizing arrangements to
have the medications delivered today. Chevron expected to
have the Italians' medication ready for delivery by May 5.
Chevron also provided a camera with which to take pictures of
the hostages so that proof of life can be established.


3. (C) The six hostages' belongings and travel documents are
en route to Lagos. Chevron has been in touch with the
hostages' families, who have provided proof of life (POL)
questions and are writing letters of concern. Chevron has
told the families the release of six Agip hostages on May 3
was not indicative of an imminent release of their family
members.

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Bayelsa State Government Takes the Lead
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4. (C) Chevron has deployed two representatives to Yenagoa
to liaise with Dr. Igali, the Chief of State Security Service
(SSS),and the Deputy Governor. These government officials
did not mention communication with the kidnappers to
Chevron's representatives, but said the SSS insider knows who
and where they are. Chevron appears supportive of the
Government's lead and has not pushed for a quick resolution.


5. (C) Chevron's crisis group members told Poloff on May 4

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their community connections believe Victor Ebikabowei and
Commander Africa were the masterminds behind this attack.
These individuals are not associated with Warri-based
militant leader Tom Polo, who many see as the most powerful
Ijaw militant leader, but would like to consider themselves
to be of equal stature and relevance. Our interlocutors
believe Ebikabowei and Africa used the name Movement for the
Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND) as a cover but are
currently weak and control relatively few creek boys and
boats.


6. (C) Dr. Igali told us again today that Henry Okah is the
ringleader of the hostage-takers and also helped engineer the
Agip taking. Also helping as an intermediary in the Shell
incident, Igali repeatedly stated, "we have our hands full."
He stated preliminary contacts and negotiations have started
for the Chevron group. While he thought the talks would be
intense, he was hopeful a release would take place in the
next several days. However, he was more sanguine about the
early release of the hostages taken at a Shell facility in
Rivers State. He claimed the captors in that instance were
different than the Chevron group and that their motives were
also different, implying a more purely pecuniary interest at
play.

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Chevron Bringing Additional Personnel For Offloading
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7. (C) Chevron's crisis team told Poloff on May 3 the
company planned to offload one to two hundred thousand
barrels of oil around May 10 from the attacked vessel because
they did not foresee continued threats to that vessel.
Consequently, Chevron is bringing additional personnel for
the offloading to augment the fifty still onboard. However,
expatriates have been pulled from the "swamp areas" and the
Navy was purportedly sending 13 additional vessels, which
Chevron says have not yet arrived, to patrol the area.
Chevron did not plan to evacuate its approximately 22
expatriates around Port Harcourt and Ooni, Rivers State.

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Bayelsa: Agip Expat Workers Released Same Day
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8. (SBU) Six expatriates (no Americans involved) were
released May 3, hours after being abducted from the Mystras
floating production, storage, and offloading vessel (FPSO)
near Brass. Agip's regional security advisor said this
attack resembled a previous attack on Agip in November 2006,
both likely perpetrated by a former crane operator on the
Mystras. (Note: A note reportedly left on the vessel stated
this attack was not the work of the Movement for the
Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND). The note was
released later the same day in a public announcement. This
contradicts Dr. Igali's assertion that Henry Okah played a
hand in the Mystras incident. End Note.)

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Rivers: Shell Filipinos, Koreans, Nigerian Remain Hostages
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9. (C) Control Risks Group (CRG),who is working on both the
Chevron and Shell's incidents, said eight Filipinos, not nine
as previously reported, three Koreans, and one Nigerian were
abducted from Daewoo's Afam Gas Project in Rivers State on
May 3. At least one Joint Task Force soldier was killed
during the attack and others fatally wounded. CRG speculated
this attack was more criminal than militant; no one has
claimed responsibility for this attack.
BROWNE