The deaths of 37 people, including 14 minors, held in custody by the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) in Niger State, were caused by asphyxiation from overcrowding, poor ventilation, heat stress, and dehydration, according to an independent investigative committee set up by the Federal Government to look into the matter.
The committee’s chairman, Jonathan Kure, a former Deputy Director-General of the Department of State Services, made this known on Tuesday in Abuja while presenting the panel’s report to the Minister of Interior, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo.
Kure stated that the deaths could have been prevented, blaming them on unlawful detention conditions, a failure of the duty of care, disregard for distress calls, and weak supervision.
He said, “The committee concluded that the incident was a preventable custodial tragedy caused by severe overcrowding, unlawful and unsuitable detention conditions, failure of duty of care, disregard of repeated distress warnings, inadequate supervision, and wider systemic deficiencies.”
The 10-member committee was set up on the directive of President Bola Tinubu to investigate the deaths of suspects arrested during operations against suspected illegal mining in Niger State.
Although early reports put the death toll at 37, the committee verified 33 deaths and identified 41 survivors.
According to Kure, medical and forensic evidence indicated that the victims suffered environmental asphyxia after being held for a prolonged period in a severely overcrowded and poorly ventilated cell. He added that the evidence did not back claims that an outbreak of disease was responsible for the deaths.
The committee established that NSCDC personnel carried out raids on September 15 and 16 without an approved operational order or sufficient planning or consultation with the relevant mining authorities. The corps’ national headquarters was also not notified before the operation got underway.
Kure said about 50 male detainees were held in a cell of roughly 20 square meters, with insufficient ventilation, no running water, poor lighting, and no working toilet.
Food and drinking water were either unavailable or grossly insufficient, and adults and minors were detained together.
He said, “The detention conditions were found to be grossly inadequate and inconsistent with constitutional safeguards, the Administration of Criminal Justice Act, the Child Rights Act, and accepted international standards.”
He added that witnesses told the committee detainees repeatedly banged on the cell doors and walls, shouted for help, and pleaded for water as conditions worsened overnight.
Kure said, “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.”
The deaths occurred between 8pm on September 16 and 7am on September 17, when the cell was finally opened. Post-mortem examinations were carried out on three bodies, while the remaining 30 had been buried before the committee’s medical team arrived.
The panel also found no evidence to back allegations that an aerosol substance had been sprayed into the cell before the deaths. It noted, however, that the detention area had been cleaned, disinfected, and altered before independent forensic investigators arrived, and that the detention register for September 16 could not be found.
The committee identified leadership failures and professional misconduct among officers, including the state commandant, the Head of the Investigation Unit, and other personnel responsible for detainee welfare.
It accused the state commandant of authorizing and overseeing the operation without adequate planning or supervision, allowing overcrowding and then blaming the deaths on a disease outbreak.
Other officers were accused of neglecting distress calls, upholding unlawful detention conditions, holding minors without sufficient protection, and taking part in modifying the detention area.
The committee recommended that culpable officers be prosecuted for offenses such as murder, criminal negligence, torture, and inhuman treatment, where applicable. It also urged investigations into allegations of extortion and the mismanagement of exhibits.
It further recommended the summary dismissal of the state commandant and the officers found directly responsible for the deaths, along with administrative sanctions for other personnel whose failures contributed to the incident.
Regarding compensation, the committee proposed N30m for each of the 33 bereaved families and N10m for each of the 41 survivors, bringing the total compensation package to N1.4bn.
It also recommended educational support for the dependents of the deceased, medical rehabilitation for survivors, psychological support 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 urged a comprehensive overhaul of the NSCDC’s leadership and operations, including standard detention facilities, CCTV installation in custodial areas, improved emergency medical response, stronger oversight, and enhanced human rights training.
Receiving the report, Tunji-Ojo pledged that the Federal Government would implement its recommendations and ensure justice for the victims.
He directed the NSCDC Commandant-General to immediately suspend officers allegedly involved in cleaning the detention center and potentially destroying evidence.
“The best gift we can give to the deceased is justice. And justice must be done,” the minister said.
He said the report would be forwarded to the Office of the Attorney-General of the Federation and the Minister of Justice for further judicial action, while the ministry would review the administrative recommendations and work with the corps on institutional reforms.
“It’s the era of setting up committees just to douse tension. It’s not now,” Tunji-Ojo said, adding that officers implicated in the concealment or destruction of evidence would face suspension pending investigations and disciplinary action.
Meanwhile, a committee member, Deji Adeyanju, initially raised concerns over what he described as the removal of a section of the report’s executive summary.
Adeyanju alleged that the section, which was present when the committee concluded its work, was missing from the version presented to the minister.
He called for its restoration and questioned whether references to the NSCDC Commandant-General had been removed.
However, speaking to journalists after the presentation, Adeyanju said he had reviewed the full report and confirmed that the section remained in the main document.
“I don’t want these people to die in vain,” he said.
Chronicle NG reports that the victims died on September 17, 2026, while in the custody of the NSCDC Niger State Command in Minna.
They were among persons arrested during operations against suspected illegal mining in the M.I. Wushishi and Lukoto areas of the state.
