The Federal Government has pledged to ensure justice for 33 persons who died in the custody of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) in Minna, Niger State, warning that anyone found culpable will face appropriate sanctions.
The Minister of Interior, Dr Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, gave the assurance on Tuesday in Abuja while receiving the report of an independent investigative committee chaired by retired Deputy Director-General of the Department of State Services, Jonathan Kure.
Tunji-Ojo said the ministry would forward the full report to the Office of the Attorney-General of the Federation for necessary judicial action, noting that it lacked prosecutorial powers.
He disclosed that the Attorney-General had made several enquiries about the report, reflecting President Bola Tinubu’s concern over the incident.
“We keep our promises, we keep our words. You can be rest assured we will do the right thing,” the minister said, adding that administrative recommendations within the ministry’s authority would be implemented promptly.
He said the administration was committed to demonstrating that Nigeria cared for everyone, particularly vulnerable citizens.
Presenting the committee’s executive summary, Kure described the deaths as an entirely preventable custodial tragedy, dismissing claims that a disease outbreak caused the fatalities.
According to him, medical and forensic evidence established that the victims died from environmental asphyxia, an acute respiratory failure caused by prolonged confinement in a severely overcrowded and poorly ventilated cell, compounded by extreme heat and dehydration.
The panel also identified unsuitable detention conditions, failure of duty of care, disregard for repeated distress warnings, inadequate supervision and systemic deficiencies as factors that contributed to the deaths.
Kure said the committee interviewed NSCDC officials, operational personnel, cell guards, medical staff, 29 of the 41 survivors, including nine minors, bereaved families, community leaders and graveyard managers.
It also examined arrest registers, duty rosters, hospital and mortuary records, autopsy findings and burial records.
The investigation further established that the operation that led to the arrests of suspected illegal miners around Minna was conducted without an operational order or approval from the NSCDC National Headquarters.
The committee faulted the handling of evidence, noting that 30 of the deceased were buried before autopsies could be conducted.
It also found that the detention register for September 16, 2026, was unavailable, while the cell had been cleaned, disinfected and altered before independent forensic experts arrived.
Panel recommends N1.4bn compensation
The committee recommended a total compensation package of N1.4 billion for the families of the deceased and survivors.
Under the proposal, each of the 33 deceased persons’ families would receive N30 million, while each of the 41 survivors would receive N10 million.
Other recommendations include educational support for dependants of the deceased, medical rehabilitation for survivors, psychological support for affected families and a formal apology from the Federal Government.
The panel also recommended the summary dismissal of personnel whose direct actions caused the deaths, alongside administrative sanctions for other officers whose negligence contributed to the tragedy.
Suspended commandant, five officers indicted
Kure detailed the alleged roles of suspended Niger State NSCDC Commandant, Suberu Aniviye, and five other officers in the incident.
According to the committee, Aniviye authorised and supervised the operation without proper planning or approval, permitted overcrowding, failed to ensure lawful detention and subsequently issued a public statement falsely attributing the deaths to a disease outbreak.
Kure described the alleged actions as gross leadership failure, abuse of authority and serious professional misconduct.
The committee also accused CSC Oluwadare Sunday, head of the Investigation Unit, of facilitating unlawful detention, disregarding legal and medical concerns and failing to intervene despite worsening conditions in the cell.
SC Usman Isah Ndamaka was indicted for allegedly maintaining overcrowded conditions, directing subordinates not to open the cell, ignoring emergency alerts and participating in the cleaning and alteration of the detention area before investigators arrived.
The panel said the station guard, ASCI Hassan Mohammed, failed to open the cell despite repeated distress signals and did not escalate the emergency.
DSC Sule Garba was accused of profiling detainees, including minors, without adequate protection of their rights, as well as poor documentation of exhibits.
Another officer, DSC Musa Marafa, was accused of unlawfully arresting Emmanuel Emeka over a civil debt dispute, resulting in his continued detention and eventual death alongside the other detainees.
Committee identifies institutional failures
Beyond individual responsibility, the committee identified broader institutional weaknesses that contributed to the tragedy.
These included inadequate detention facilities, the absence of closed-circuit television cameras, weak custodial oversight, poor record-keeping, lack of emergency medical capacity, ineffective supervision and chronic underfunding.
The panel said these deficiencies created an environment in which violations could occur without being detected or addressed.
The report is expected to guide further judicial and administrative action as the Federal Government considers the committee’s recommendations.
