Niger Miners’ Deaths: Suspended NSCDC Commandant, 21 Officers Detained

The suspended Niger State Commandant of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), along with 21 other officers, has been detained in Abuja over the deaths of 37 suspected illegal miners in NSCDC custody.

A senior officer at the corps’ national headquarters told Saturday Punch on Friday that the affected personnel had been summoned to Abuja as part of the investigation.

“As I am talking to you, the suspended commandant, the arresting officer, the investigation officer, and all other personnel involved in the incident are currently in custody. They arrived in Abuja today (Friday),” the officer said on condition of anonymity.

The NSCDC spokesperson, Afolabi Babawale, confirmed the detention, telling Saturday Punch that the suspended commandant and the other personnel involved were “in custody.”

He said those detained included the heads of the corps’ legal, intelligence, and mining units, as well as the officer responsible for the detention facility where the miners were held.

Babawale said the head of the NSCDC Intelligence Unit was questioning the officers as investigations continued.

“Investigation is ongoing into the matter,” he added.

Meanwhile, a survivor of the reported deaths of suspected illegal miners has alleged that the mining site where they worked belongs to former military Head of State, Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida.

The survivor, Malam Babawo Tudun Nasera, made the allegation while recounting the arrest and death of his 17-year-old brother, Salim, who was among the miners detained by NSCDC personnel.

Nasera, in a video seen by SaharaReporters, said the miners were arrested at the mining site and remained in custody for three days before their deaths were discovered.

According to Nasera, the authorities wanted the miners to stop working at the site despite an instruction from the alleged owner that mining activities should continue.