An independent investigative committee set up by the Federal Government has recommended the prosecution of officers found culpable in the deaths of detainees at a Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) facility in Niger State.
The panel found that the victims died from asphyxiation caused by overcrowding, poor ventilation, excessive heat and dehydration, describing the incident as a preventable custodial tragedy.
The committee chairman and former Deputy Director-General of the Department of State Services, Jonathan Kure, disclosed the findings on Tuesday while submitting the panel’s report to the Minister of Interior, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, in Abuja.
The committee also proposed compensation of ₦30 million for each of 33 bereaved families and ₦10 million for each of 41 survivors, alongside educational assistance for dependants of the deceased and medical and psychological support for affected persons.
According to the report, the deaths resulted from unlawful detention conditions, failure of duty of care, disregard for repeated distress calls and inadequate supervision by officers responsible for the detainees.
The committee was constituted following President Bola Tinubu’s directive to investigate the deaths of suspects arrested during operations against suspected illegal mining activities in Niger State.
Kure said medical and forensic evidence established that the victims suffered environmental asphyxia after being confined for hours in a severely overcrowded and poorly ventilated cell.
He noted that the evidence did not support claims that a disease outbreak was responsible for the deaths.
The investigation revealed that NSCDC personnel conducted raids on September 15 and 16 without an approved operational order, adequate planning or consultation with relevant mining authorities.
The corps’ national headquarters was also reportedly not informed before the operation.
The panel found that approximately 50 male detainees were held in a cell measuring about 20 square metres, with inadequate ventilation, no running water, poor lighting and no functioning toilet.
Food and drinking water were either unavailable or grossly insufficient, while adults and minors were detained together.
Kure said the conditions violated constitutional safeguards, the Administration of Criminal Justice Act, the Child Rights Act and accepted international standards.
Witnesses reportedly told the committee that detainees repeatedly banged on the cell doors and walls, shouted for help and pleaded for water as conditions deteriorated overnight.
“Despite clear evidence that conditions inside the cell had become life-threatening, officers responsible for detainee welfare failed to open the cell, to decongest the facility, or arrange emergency intervention,” Kure said.
The deaths reportedly occurred between 8 p.m. on September 16 and 7 a.m. on September 17, when the cell was eventually opened.
The panel disclosed that post-mortem examinations were conducted on three bodies, while the remaining 30 had been buried before the arrival of its medical team.
Although the committee found no evidence to support allegations that an aerosol substance had been sprayed into the cell, it raised concerns that the detention area had been cleaned, disinfected and altered before independent forensic investigators arrived.
It also noted that the detention register for September 16 was unavailable.
The investigation identified alleged leadership failures and professional misconduct involving the state commandant, the head of the Investigation Unit and other officers responsible for the welfare of detainees.
The state commandant was accused of authorising and supervising the operation without adequate planning and oversight, allowing overcrowding and subsequently attributing the deaths to a disease outbreak.
Other personnel were accused of ignoring distress calls, maintaining unlawful detention conditions, failing to protect detained minors and participating in the alteration of the detention facility.
The committee recommended that officers found culpable be prosecuted for offences including murder, criminal negligence, torture and inhuman treatment, where applicable.
It also called for investigations into alleged extortion and the mismanagement of exhibits.
It further proposed the summary dismissal of the state commandant and officers directly responsible for the deaths, as well as administrative sanctions against other personnel whose actions or omissions contributed to the tragedy.
Beyond compensation, the panel called for educational support for dependants of the deceased, medical rehabilitation for survivors, psychological assistance for affected families and a formal apology from the Federal Government.
“The committee concludes that the death of 33 detainees, including 14 minors, was entirely preventable,” Kure said.
The panel also recommended a comprehensive overhaul of the NSCDC’s leadership and operational procedures, including the provision of standard detention facilities, installation of closed-circuit television cameras in custodial areas, improved emergency medical response, stronger oversight mechanisms and enhanced human rights training.
Receiving the report, Tunji-Ojo assured Nigerians that the Federal Government would implement its recommendations and pursue justice for the victims.
The minister directed the NSCDC Commandant-General to immediately suspend officers allegedly involved in cleaning the detention centre and potentially destroying evidence.
“The best gift we can give to the deceased is justice. And justice must be done,” he said.
Tunji-Ojo added that the report would be forwarded to the Office of the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice for further legal action, while the Ministry of Interior would consider the administrative recommendations and work with the corps on institutional reforms.
He stressed that the government would not establish investigative committees merely to calm public outrage without acting on their findings.
Meanwhile, committee member and activist Deji Adeyanju initially expressed concern over what he described as the removal of a section of the report’s executive summary from the version presented to the minister.
Adeyanju alleged that the section had been present when the committee concluded its work and questioned whether references to the NSCDC Commandant-General had been removed.
However, after reviewing the full report, he told journalists that the section remained in the main document.
“I don’t want these people to die in vain,” he said.
The victims died on September 17, 2026, while in NSCDC custody in Minna, Niger State.
They were among suspects arrested during operations against suspected illegal mining in the M.I. Wushishi and Lukoto areas of the state.
