By Chibuike Nwabuko
ABUJA (PRECISE POST) – The Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) has demanded a thorough, independent and transparent investigation into the deaths of 37 persons arrested over suspected illegal mining activities and detained by the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) in Minna, Niger State.
NBA President, Oyinkansola Badejo-Okusanya, SAN, made the demand in a statement issued on Saturday, expressing “profound sadness and grave concern” over the incident, which has triggered public outrage and investigations by several government agencies.
Precise Post recalls that the deaths were reported in the early hours of Thursday, September 17, 2026, after the detainees were arrested during NSCDC operations targeting suspected illegal mining activities in the M.I. Wushishi/Lukoto area of Niger State on September 15 and 16. Governor Mohammed Umaru Bago subsequently confirmed that 37 persons had died in custody.
The NBA president extended condolences to the families of the deceased and the people and government of Niger State, while wishing survivors a full recovery from what she described as a deeply traumatic experience.
Badejo-Okusanya stressed that regardless of the circumstances surrounding their arrests, the deceased were Nigerians who entered government custody alive and were entitled to the protection of the law, including the preservation of their lives and human dignity.
The NBA, she said, deliberately refrained from immediately pronouncing on the cause of the deaths because the Association would not reach conclusions ahead of available evidence.
“That restraint must not, however, be mistaken for indifference,” she said, insisting that the deaths of 37 people in the custody of a government agency constituted an incident of “the utmost gravity” requiring an independent and credible investigation.
‘Difficult Questions Must Be Answered’
The NBA president said the investigation must establish how 37 people could die within such a short period while in custody and determine the conditions under which they were detained.
She asked authorities to establish the number of detainees in the facility, its lawful capacity, the medical facilities available, what happened when detainees reportedly began experiencing distress, and the scientific cause of death.
Further recall that Authorities have said the cause of death has not yet been conclusively established. Governor Bago said possible causes under investigation included suffocation arising from overcrowding and exposure to hazardous substances associated with mining activities, while forensic and medical examinations were being pursued.
However, the NSCDC had initially referred to a suspected disease outbreak but subsequently stressed that the actual cause of death remained subject to medical and laboratory confirmation.
Badejo-Okusanya said allegations concerning overcrowding, inadequate ventilation, treatment of detainees and events preceding the deaths should neither be accepted as established facts nor ignored.
“They must be investigated and either established or disproved by evidence,” she said.
NBA Commends Government Response
The NBA acknowledged the measures already taken by the government, including the suspension of the Niger State NSCDC Commandant, the summoning of relevant senior officers and the constitution of investigative mechanisms by the NSCDC and Niger State Government.
It also noted the separate intervention of the Nigeria Police Force, the deployment of a team by the Federal Ministry of Solid Minerals Development and the intervention of the Minister of Interior, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo.
Precise Post further recalls that President Bola Tinubu has also directed a full and transparent investigation into the deaths and called for accountability where abuse, negligence or dereliction of duty is established.
The NBA said the measures were commendable but stressed that the effectiveness of the response would ultimately depend on the independence and thoroughness of the investigations, transparency of the findings and accountability arising from them.
‘A Suspect Is Not a Convict’
The association used the incident to raise broader concerns about the treatment of suspects in Nigeria’s law-enforcement system.
Badejo-Okusanya argued that the presumption of innocence must apply equally to all Nigerians, irrespective of wealth, influence or social status.
“A suspect is not a convict, whether rich or poor, powerful or powerless,” she said, adding that the constitutional guarantee must shape the State’s treatment of a person from the moment his or her liberty is taken away.
She said reports that some detainees cried out for help while struggling to breathe were particularly disturbing and urged investigators to establish who heard the cries, what they knew, what action was taken and when it was taken.
The NBA president also called for a wider review of custodial practices across Nigeria’s security and law-enforcement institutions.
She said professionalism should not be measured only by arrests or prosecutions, but also by the restraint with which state power is exercised and the dignity and humanity accorded persons in custody.
NBA Raises Alarm Over Children in Custody
The association expressed particular concern over reports and video evidence suggesting that children were among those detained and deceased.
Badejo-Okusanya said the precise ages and identities of all victims must be officially established and urged investigators to determine whether legal safeguards applicable to children were observed.
She also questioned what children were doing at the mining sites and whether they should have been detained in the first place.
“If children were being used to perform mining labour, then our inquiry must go beyond whether they were engaged in ‘illegal mining’,” she said.
According to her, authorities must establish who placed the children at the sites, who controlled the operations and who benefited from their labour.
“A child found working at an illegal mining site may him or herself be a victim requiring the protection of the State,” she said.
NBA Demands Investigation Into Those Behind Illegal Mining
The NBA also urged authorities not to limit enforcement of illegal mining laws to the people found physically working at mining sites.
While acknowledging that illegal mining damages communities and the environment and deprives Nigeria of revenue, the association said enforcement should also identify those who own, finance, control and profit from illegal mining operations.
“Poverty and vulnerability must not make the labourer the easiest face to arrest while those who organise and profit from the illegality of a much larger enterprise remain beyond the reach of enforcement,” Badejo-Okusanya said.
She therefore called for all persons found to be involved in the ownership, financing or control of the mining operations to be investigated and prosecuted where evidence establishes offences.
NBA Sets Up Minna Team
The NBA president disclosed that the association had constituted a team headed by Senior Advocate of Nigeria and former NBA General Secretary, Jonathan Gunu Taidi, SAN, who is resident in Minna.
The team, comprising members of the NBA Minna Branch, will engage with the families of the deceased and surviving detainees, interact with relevant authorities and independently monitor developments surrounding the arrests, detention and deaths.
The NBA also demanded that relevant evidence be preserved, proper forensic and medical investigations conducted, and surviving detainees and material witnesses protected from intimidation.
It further called for the findings of the various investigations to be made public to the fullest extent permitted by law.
Where evidence establishes criminal or other legal responsibility, the NBA said those responsible must face the law regardless of their rank or office.
The association also pledged to monitor any prosecutions arising from the incident to ensure that justice is pursued for the deceased while defendants are accorded their constitutional right to a fair trial.
NBA Appeals for Calm
Against the backdrop of protests that erupted in Minna following the deaths, the NBA appealed to citizens to remain calm and allow investigations to proceed unhindered.
The Niger State Government imposed a curfew on Minna amid the unrest and also declared three days of mourning for the victims.
The association warned that violence and destruction would not restore the lives lost or provide answers to grieving families.
“The fact that 37 Nigerians went into government custody and did not return to their families alive demands answers, and those answers must come from evidence, not conjecture,” Badejo-Okusanya said.
She assured that the NBA would closely monitor the investigative process and insist on accountability wherever responsibility is established.
The association, she added, would also insist that regardless of a person’s status or the offence he or she may be suspected of committing, “the dignity and life of every Nigerian in the custody of the State remain inviolable.”
