The real cause of the death of the 33 miners in the custody of the Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) in Minna, Niger State, has revealed.
The revelation is coming from the independent ministerial committee saddled with the investigation.
This was contained in the Executive Summary by the chairman of the Committee, Jonathan Kure, presented yesterday in Abuja, to the Minister of Interior, Hon. Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo.
“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 evidence did not support claims that the death resulted from a disease outbreak.
“Available medical and forensic evidence instead indicated that the fatalities resulted from an environmental aphasia, an acute respiratory failure caused by prolonged confinement in a severely overcrowded and poorly ventilated detention cell, aggravated by heat stress and dehydration.
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“The investigation included interviews with NACDC leadership, operational personnel, cell guards, medical staff, survivors, bereaved families, community representatives, and graveside managers.
“It also involved examination of arrest and detention registers, communication records, duty rosters, AZB registers, hospital and mortuary records, autopsy findings, and burial records. 29 of the 41 survivors were interviewed, including nine minors.
“Evidence from multiple independent sources was analysed and cross-checked to reconstruct events and determine responsibility.
“The committee established that the tragedy stemmed from enforcement operations against suspected illegal mining activities in and around Minna”, the report stated.
The Eagle reports that coordinated operations conducted by the Niger State Command of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps in the M.I. Wushishi/Lukoto axis of Niger State on September 15 and 16, 2026, as part of efforts to curb illegal mining activities in the state led to the arrest of many.
No fewer than 33 of the suspected illegal miners were feared dead after being detained at an NSCDC facility in Minna.
The deaths were reportedly discovered in the early hours of Thursday, with the Niger State Commandant, Suberu Aniviye, attributing them to a suspected outbreak of disease.
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