Niger State Governor, Mohammed Umaru Bago, has confirmed the death of 37 suspected illegal miners while in the custody of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps in Minna, the state capital.
Bago confirmed the deaths on Thursday during a press conference in Minna, describing the incident as “sad” and “tragic”.
The governor said the state government had constituted a committee of inquiry to investigate the circumstances surrounding the deaths and determine what led to the incident.
The confirmation came as the Federal Government ordered the immediate suspension of the Niger State Commandant of the NSCDC, Suberu Siyaka Aniviye, over the deaths.
The Minister of Interior, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, announced the suspension in a statement issued on Friday by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Alao Babatunde.
According to the statement, the deaths allegedly occurred at the M.I. Wushishi/Lukoto axis of Minna following the arrest of the suspected illegal miners during enforcement operations conducted in parts of Niger State on September 15 and 16, 2026.
The minister ordered a full investigation into the circumstances surrounding the incident, while directing that the state commandant remain suspended pending the outcome of the probe.
“It is an unfortunate incident, however, a full investigation will be conducted while the commandant under whose watch this happened remains suspended,” Tunji-Ojo said.
He stressed that the protection of lives remained a priority of the Federal Government, adding that the circumstances surrounding the deaths would be thoroughly investigated.
“We run a government whose ultimate priority is security of lives and we have worked to stay true to this,” the minister declared.
Tunji-Ojo urged members of the public to remain calm and law-abiding to enable the authorities conduct a transparent investigation into the incident.
He also commiserated with Governor Bago and the families and relatives of the deceased, while assuring that the circumstances surrounding the deaths would be established through the investigation.
The incident has raised concerns over the circumstances surrounding the deaths of the suspected illegal miners while in NSCDC custody, with both the state and Federal Government now initiating separate processes to establish what happened.
