Niger State Governor Umar Bago has said he saw several dead bodies with blood stains, burns, bruises and cuts when he visited the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) facility where 37 suspected illegal miners died in custody.
Speaking on Channels Television’s Sunday Politics, Bago said the bodies were lying “on the floor and outside” when he arrived, while some detainees who were still alive were taken to hospital.
The governor said the NSCDC facility is a new office and not an old detention centre, but questioned whether the cell was large enough to accommodate the number of detainees reportedly held there.
“Honestly speaking, the cell is not an old facility. In fact, it is just their new office. They just moved into that office not quite and the facility is practically very new,” Bago said.
He, however, said he was disturbed by the condition in which he found the detainees.
When we got there [the cell], I saw a lot of dead corpses on the floor and outside; some had blood stains in their noses and in their mouths, and some had a lot of burns and some kind of bruises on their bodies, and some even had cuts on their bodies… -Niger State Governor Umar Bago, describing the condition of the NSCDC detention cell following the deaths of 37 suspected illegal miners in custody. #SundayPolitics
— Channels Television (@channelstv) September 20, 2026
“Now, the issue of the state of the cell. When we got there, I saw a lot of dead corpses on the floor and outside and some had blood stains in their noses, in their mouths and some had a lot of burns and kind of bruises on their body,” he said.
“And some even had some cuts on their bodies.”
Bago said the condition of the victims prompted him to order that the bodies be taken to the state mortuary, while those who were still alive were rushed to hospital.
“And that made me to ask them to take them to the state mortuary because they were already lying on the floor,” he said.
“And those that were still breathing were now rushed to the hospital where they were attended to. All of them have survived, some are still in hospital though and that is what we know about it.”
The governor said the size of the cell would need to be properly assessed to determine whether it was suitable for the number of people detained there.
“But the cell is not an old cell. But the size of the cell to take that amount of people will need probably statistics or science to prove whether it has a capacity for 100 people or 50 people or even 30 people,” he said.
SaharaReporters had reported that at least 37 suspected illegal miners died in NSCDC custody after they were arrested during enforcement operations around the M.I. Wushishi/Lukoto axis on September 15 and 16.
Eyewitnesses had alleged that some of the detainees were subjected to physical assault before their deaths, while another source claimed more than 60 people had been crammed into a single cell.
One witness, Ibrahim Adamu, alleged that detainees were beaten after being arrested over suspected illegal mining.
“It is true that they caught them engaging in illegal mining, but the law does not say that when someone is caught engaging in illegal mining, they should be killed through torture or beaten to death,” Adamu had told SaharaReporters.
Another source, whose brother was among the deceased, alleged that NSCDC officers demanded N500,000 for his release and that he witnessed detainees being beaten with sticks and iron before leaving the facility.
The NSCDC has confirmed that several suspected illegal miners died in its custody but has said the actual cause of death has not been established.
The Corps initially said the detainees were found dead following a suspected disease outbreak but later clarified that any claim linking the deaths to a specific disease had not been medically or scientifically established.
The NSCDC has constituted a high-powered investigative team led by the Deputy Commandant General in charge of Intelligence and Investigation to probe the incident.
According to the Corps, the investigation will examine the condition of the suspects when they were arrested, their period in custody, the conditions of detention and the medical attention provided to them.
The remains of the deceased were deposited at the General Hospital, Minna, for medical examination and determination of the actual cause of death.
The Corps also cautioned against prematurely attributing the deaths to any particular disease pending the outcome of medical and laboratory examinations.
(SaharaReporters)
