The Federal Government’s Independent Investigative Committee probing the deaths of 37 persons in the custody of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) in Niger State has submitted its report, recommending N1.4 billion compensation for the families of 33 victims and 44 survivors.
The Committee Chairman and former Deputy Director-General of the Department of State Services, Jonathan Kure, disclosed this on Tuesday while presenting the panel’s report to the Minister of Interior, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, in Abuja.
Kure said the panel found that the deceased died from asphyxiation.
The committee chairman noted that the deaths were avoidable as the victims, including 14 minors, were held in inhuman conditions.
The committee also recommended summary dismissal of the state commandant of the Niger State Command of the NSCDC and all other officers who were directly involved in the detention and eventual death of the miners
The committee equally recommended institutional reforms for the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps in order to strengthen the leadership of the corps.
The Minister of Interior, who received the report, promised to implement the recommendations of the committee in order to ensure justice for all affected persons.
Tunji-Ojo also directed the commandant of the Corps to immediately suspend all officers who cleaned up the detention centre in order to destroy evidence.
The finding marks a major development in the investigation into the deaths of the suspected illegal miners, who died on September 17, 2026, while in the custody of the NSCDC Niger State Command in Minna.
The victims were among dozens of persons arrested during operations against suspected illegal mining in the M.I. Wushishi and Lukoto areas of the state.
