FG Sets Up Independent Panel to Probe Deaths of 37 NSCDC Detainees, Suspends Officers
Reported By Facthabournews
The Federal Government has constituted a 10-member independent committee to investigate the deaths of 37 suspected illegal miners who died while in the custody of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) in Niger State.
The Minister of Interior, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, announced the constitution of the committee in a statement dated Saturday, September 19, 2026, following President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s directive for a comprehensive, transparent and unhindered investigation into the incident.
The deaths occurred after suspected illegal miners were arrested during enforcement operations around the M.I. Wushishi and Lukoto areas of Niger State on September 15 and 16 and detained at an NSCDC facility in Minna. The exact cause of the deaths remains under investigation, with medical, laboratory and forensic examinations expected to establish what happened.
The Minister described the deaths as deeply disturbing, saying the Federal Government owes the families of the deceased and the Nigerian public a transparent account of the events leading to the tragedy.
According to the statement, the independent committee is expected to establish the identities of the deceased and investigate the circumstances surrounding their arrest, detention and deaths.
It will also determine whether there was any responsibility, complicity, negligence or misconduct by officials or other persons involved in the incident.
The committee has been directed to recommend appropriate action, including compensation where applicable, as well as measures that could prevent a recurrence of similar incidents.
Tunji-Ojo further directed the leadership of the NSCDC and all relevant officers to cooperate fully with the investigation.
All records and material evidence connected with the incident are also to be preserved and made available to investigators.
The Minister warned that any attempt to destroy or conceal evidence, intimidate witnesses or obstruct the investigation would be treated as a serious offence.
The 10-member committee will be chaired by Mr Jonathan Kure, mni, a retired Deputy Director-General of the Department of State Services, while Prof. Isa Hayatu Chiroma, SAN, former Director-General of the Nigeria Law School, will serve as Secretary.
Other members are retired AIG Hosea Hassan Karma; Prof. Olayinka Buhari, Professor of Histopathology and former Chief Medical Director of the University of Ilorin Teaching Hospital; a representative of the Minna Emirate Council; and a representative of the Niger State Government.
Also appointed are Alhaji Liman Sulaiman, National Secretary of the Miners Association of Nigeria; lawyer and human rights activist Deji Adeyanju; Mrs Zainab Suleiman Okino of Blueprint Newspaper; and public affairs analyst Dr George Agbakahi.
The committee may co-opt relevant experts where necessary. It has also been empowered to access relevant facilities and documents, visit locations connected with the incident and request memoranda from members of the public.
The panel has been given two weeks to complete its assignment and submit its report to the Minister of Interior.
Meanwhile, the Federal Government has suspended the Niger State Commandant of the NSCDC as well as 20 other officers connected with the incident, pending the conclusion of the investigation.
The suspended officers include Station Guard Officer SC Usman Isah Ndamaka; ASCI Hassan Mohammed; CCA Bala Mohammed; Arresting Officer and Officer-in-Charge of Investigation CSC Oluwadare Sunday; DCC Obafemi Elvis; CSC Annas Shitto Lamino; HOD Intelligence/Investigation DCC Philip Ajayi; and Officer-in-Charge of Legal ACC Barr. Stephen Tsado.
Others include Day/Night Duty Officer ASCI Alhassan Mohammed; Guard Duty officers IC Abdullahi Sale, IC Mohammed Sonfada, CAI Liman Abubakar, CAI Bala Usman, IC Mohammed Jiya, DSC Isah Suleiman, CAI Ahmed Wushishi, IC Sale Adamu, IC Haruna Mohammed, ASCI Aliyu Sallah and CAI Isah Sanusi.
The suspensions are administrative measures pending the outcome of the independent investigation and do not, by themselves, establish criminal responsibility.
The Federal Government’s action follows growing public concern over the deaths and calls for an independent investigation. President Tinubu had earlier ordered authorities to investigate the circumstances of the deaths and determine whether negligence, abuse, inhumane treatment or other failures contributed to the incident.
The President had also directed the Ministry of Interior and NSCDC leadership to cooperate fully with investigators and ensure that no official interferes with efforts to establish the truth.
The cause of the deaths has not yet been conclusively established. The NSCDC initially referred to a suspected disease outbreak, while other accounts have raised questions about overcrowding, ventilation and possible exposure to hazardous substances. Authorities have stressed that the actual cause can only be established through medical and forensic investigations.
Niger State Governor Mohammed Umaru Bago has said that 67 suspected illegal miners were detained in the NSCDC facility before 37 died. He said investigators were considering possible suffocation from overcrowding and exposure to hazardous substances as among the possibilities, while urging that autopsies and other examinations be expedited.
The incident has also led to protests in Minna, with authorities appealing for calm as investigations continue. The Niger State Government declared three days of mourning following the deaths.
The Interior Minister expressed condolences to the families of the deceased and appealed for calm while the independent committee carries out its assignment.
The outcome of the investigation is expected to provide answers on how the detainees died, establish whether any officials or other persons were responsible, and recommend measures to prevent a recurrence.
