According to a report by The Punch on Tuesday, October 27, 2026, 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 found that the victims died from asphyxiation.
Committee Chairman Jonathan Kure, a former Deputy Director-General of the Department of State Services, disclosed this on Tuesday in Abuja while presenting the panel’s report to the Minister of Interior, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo.
Kure said the deaths were avoidable. According to him, the victims, who included 14 minors, were held in inhuman conditions.
The panel recommended that 1.4 billion naira be paid to the families of 33 victims and to 44 survivors. It also called for the summary dismissal of the Niger State Commandant of the Corps and every other officer directly involved in the detention and eventual deaths of the miners.
In addition, the committee proposed institutional reforms to strengthen the leadership of the NSCDC.
Tunji-Ojo promised to implement the recommendations so that justice would be served for all those affected. He also directed the Corps’ commandant to immediately suspend all officers who cleaned up the detention centre in an attempt to destroy evidence.
The findings mark a major step 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 people arrested during operations against suspected illegal mining in the M.I. Wushishi and Lukoto areas of the state.
With the report now in the hands of the Interior Minister, attention will turn to how quickly the recommended sanctions and compensation are carried out.