The committee also recommended the summary dismissal of officers found principally responsible for the deaths, which it attributed to severe overcrowding, poor ventilation, dehydration and the failure of personnel to respond to repeated distress calls from detainees.
Presenting the findings to the Minister of Interior, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, on Tuesday, the committee’s chairman, Jonathan Kure, described the incident, which occurred between September 16 and 17, 2026, as a preventable custodial tragedy.
“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,” Kure said.
The 10-member panel was constituted following a directive by President Bola Tinubu to investigate the deaths of detainees arrested during operations targeting suspected illegal mining activities in Niger State.
Although initial reports put the death toll at 37, the committee said it verified 33 fatalities and identified 41 survivors. It also established that 14 of the deceased were minors.
According to Kure, medical and forensic evidence indicated that the deaths resulted from environmental asphyxia — acute respiratory failure caused by prolonged confinement in a severely overcrowded and poorly ventilated cell, aggravated by heat stress and dehydration.
The committee dismissed claims that a disease outbreak was responsible for the fatalities.
“The evidence did not support claims that the death resulted from a disease outbreak,” the chairman said.
The investigation involved interviews with NSCDC leadership, operational personnel, cell guards, medical staff, survivors, bereaved families and other witnesses.
The panel also reviewed detention registers, communication records, hospital records, autopsy findings and burial records.
Its findings showed that NSCDC personnel conducted raids on September 15 and 16 following complaints about mining activities around the Miwishishi axis.
However, the committee found that the operation was carried out without an approved operational order, adequate planning or consultation with relevant mining authorities. The NSCDC national headquarters was also not informed before the operation commenced.
Kure said approximately 50 male detainees were confined in a cell measuring about 20 square metres, with inadequate ventilation, no running water, poor lighting and no functioning toilet.
Food and drinking water were either unavailable or grossly inadequate, while adults and minors were held together.
According to the chairman, witnesses told the committee that detainees repeatedly banged on the cell doors and walls, shouted for help and pleaded for water as conditions deteriorated during the night.
“Despite clear evidence that conditions inside the cell had become life-threatening, officers responsible for detainee welfare failed to open the cell, to decongest the facility, or arrange emergency intervention,” he said.
The committee established that the deaths occurred between 8pm on September 16 and 7am on September 17, when the cell was eventually opened.
The panel said post-mortem examinations were conducted on three bodies, while the remaining 30 had been buried before the arrival of its medical team.
Kure explained that the committee adopted 33 as the verified death toll because the higher figures reported immediately after the incident could not be reconciled with available records and identified victims.
“The committee confirmed 33 as the verified casualty figure because higher numbers reported immediately after the incident could not be reconciled with available records and identified victims. Post-mortem examinations were conducted on three available bodies,” he said.
The committee’s recommendations include prosecuting officers found culpable, dismissing those principally responsible for the deaths and paying N1.4bn in compensation to bereaved families and survivors.
The findings highlight serious failures in detention management, supervision and the duty of care owed to people held in custody, with the panel concluding that the tragedy could have been prevented.
