Nigerian security forces said Monday they had arrested 28 suspected oil pipeline vandals in southwest Ogun State.

The military commanding officer in charge of 35 Artillery Brigade, Brig.-Gen. David Ahmadu, said the suspects were arrested while siphoning petroleum products from Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) pipelines in Ogere-remo area of the state.

The operation involved military personnel and the anti- vandalism unit of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defense Corps (NSCDC), who acted early in the day on a tip-off by some villagers.

Ahmadu described the act as an economic sabotage.

The military handed over the suspects to the civil defense which pledged to charge them to court as soon as investigation was concluded.

Nigeria is Africa's top oil producer. But pipelines are regularly vandalized by impoverished residents, who risk their lives to siphon off fuel.