A Federal Government investigative committee has revealed that 37 suspected illegal miners died from suffocation while in the custody of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) in Niger State.
The committee attributed the deaths to overcrowding, poor ventilation, extreme heat and dehydration at the detention facility. It also recommended the dismissal and prosecution of officers found responsible for the incident.
The chairman of the committee and former Deputy Director-General of the Department of State Services (DSS), Jonathan Kure, disclosed the findings on Tuesday while presenting the panel’s report to the Minister of Interior, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, in Abuja.
Kure explained that the investigation established that the detainees died from environmental asphyxia, a condition in which a person is deprived of sufficient oxygen due to surrounding environmental conditions.
According to the report, the deaths were caused by overcrowding, unsuitable detention conditions, failure to provide adequate care and poor supervision.
The panel further stated that the prolonged confinement of the detainees in a severely overcrowded cell, combined with heat stress and dehydration, contributed to the fatalities.
The 37 suspected miners reportedly died on September 17, 2026, while being detained at the NSCDC Niger State Command in Minna.
They were among those arrested during operations against suspected illegal mining activities in the M.I. Wushishi and Lukoto areas of Niger State.
The investigation also uncovered that the operation leading to their arrest was conducted without an operational order or approval from the NSCDC national headquarters.
Following the incident, the Federal Government suspended the Niger State NSCDC Commandant, Suberu Aniviye, alongside 20 other officers pending the conclusion of the investigation.
President Bola Tinubu subsequently ordered a comprehensive inquiry into the deaths, directing that any officer found culpable should face appropriate disciplinary and legal consequences.
The President also emphasised that the suspension of the affected officers must not prevent criminal prosecution if evidence of wrongdoing is established.
In response, Interior Minister Tunji-Ojo inaugurated a 10-member investigative committee on September 22, 2026, to establish the circumstances surrounding the arrests, detention and deaths of the suspected miners.
The committee was mandated to investigate the conditions under which the detainees were held, determine whether negligence or misconduct contributed to the incident and recommend measures to prevent a recurrence.
As part of its investigation, the panel visited the detention facility in Minna, inspected the mining site and the NSCDC state headquarters, and conducted autopsies on the deceased.
It also collected statements from survivors, relatives of the victims, NSCDC personnel and other witnesses who could provide relevant information.
The committee had earlier sought a two-week extension to complete its assignment, citing delays in obtaining forensic and pathology reports required to establish the circumstances surrounding the deaths.
Before the release of the investigative report, the NSCDC had suggested that a possible diphtheria outbreak might have been responsible for the deaths. However, the agency acknowledged that medical examinations were necessary to determine the actual cause.
The committee’s findings have now identified suffocation linked to overcrowding, poor ventilation, heat and dehydration as the cause of the fatalities.
The recommendation for the dismissal and prosecution of implicated officers is expected to guide the government’s next steps in addressing the incident and determining accountability for the deaths of the 37 detainees.
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