Nigeria Brings Russians to Justice

Thirteen Russian sailors remain in custody after they pleaded not guilty to charges of using their ship to transport stolen crude oil.

The accused are the first foreigners to be charged in Nigeria for activities linked to the criminal syndicates that steal an estimated 10 percent of the country's oil production.

The Russians were arrested when their ship, the M.T. African Pride, was seized by the navy on 8 October 2003 near the Forcados oil export terminal of Royal Dutch Shell.

The ship was found to be carrying 11,300 tonnes of crude oil worth US $2.7 million, which had allegedly been tapped illegally from pipelines in the oil-rich Niger Delta.

The crew was charged in the Federal High Court in Lagos on Tuesday with conspiracy and the lifting of crude oil without authority.

All 13 could face sentences of life imprisonment if found guilty on either of the two counts.