Three more personnel of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) have been arrested and detained in connection with the deaths of 37 artisanal miners.
The latest arrests bring to 24, the number of officials of the Corps now behind bars.
NSCDC Public Relations Officer Babawale Afolabi made this known in a statement yesterday, saying the Commandant General, Ahmed Audi, has ordered that the service flag of the Corps should be flown at half-mast for three days across various formations in the country in honour of the deceased.
President Bola Tinubu had earlier directed an independent probe of the incident, with assurance that those responsible for the deaths would account for their deeds.
Afolabi added that the Commandant General of the Corps also assured that due process, transparency and accountability would be strictly followed in the investigation of the arrested personnel.
He gave the names of detained personnel as Subaru Aniviye, John Chagwa, Obafemi Elvis, Stephen Tsado, Oluwadare Sunday. Annas Lamino,
Usman Ndamaka, Aminu Garba, Musa Marafa, Isah Sulaiman, Hassan Muhammad, Alhassan Muhammad, and Aliyu Sallah.
Others are Abdullahi Sale, Mohammed Sonfada, Mohammed Jiya, Sale Adamu, Haruna Muhammed, Baba Muhamma, Isah Sanusi, Liman Abubakar, Bala Usman and Ahmed Wushishi.
The statement by Afolabi reads in part: ‘In a swift and decisive joint operation conducted in conjunction with the Commandant General’s Special Investigation Squad (SIS), all officers and men of the Niger State Command linked to the gross misconduct have since, on the 17th September 2026, been taken into protective custody at the National Headquarters, Abuja, where they are undergoing rigorous interrogation and administrative disciplinary action, to make them available for the Presidential Independent Investigation Committee and other investigation panels for further investigation and possible prosecution.
ý’In solemn demonstration of our grief, institutional remorse, and absolute disapproval of this incident, the Commandant General has ordered that the NSCDC flag be flown at half-mast across all formations for three (3) days, starting from Sunday (yesterday) to signal our collective mourning and our unwavering resolve to purge the system of bad eggs.’
ýThe Corps spokesman quoted the Commandant General as saying that ‘as a Corps built on integrity, professionalism, discipline, and absolute respect for the rule of law, we do not condone unprofessional conduct, high-handedness, or any action that undermines the fundamental rights of citizens or the sacred trust reposed in us.’