37 Nigerian miners suffocated in overcrowded cell, inquiry finds

Thirty-seven suspected illegal miners in Nigeria died of suffocation after being confined in an overcrowded cell by a security agency, a government investigation has found. The deaths occurred after the suspects were arrested in September by officers from the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps over alleged illegal mining in Niger state.

The findings, announced on Tuesday, have intensified public anger and protests in Nigeria, where the case has drawn renewed attention to the country’s detention system and the treatment of people held in custody. The security agency had initially said the deaths were caused by an outbreak of illness inside the cell, an account rejected by survivors.

Jonathan Kure, who led the committee set up by the Ministry of Interior to investigate the incident, said about 50 detainees had been kept in a space of roughly 20 square metres, or 215 square feet. The panel concluded that the men died because of conditions inside the holding area rather than disease.

Kure said the deaths resulted from “severe overcrowding, illegal and inadequate detention conditions, failure in duty of care, disregard of repeated distress warnings, insufficient supervision and broader systemic deficiencies”. He added that the arrests had been carried out without proper planning or consultation with the relevant authorities.

Interior Minister Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo has suspended the local commander involved, along with several officers, following the findings. The committee’s conclusions point to failures both in the immediate handling of the detainees and in wider oversight of detention practices.

The panel recommended compensation for those affected, proposing payments of 30 million naira, about $22,000, to each family of the deceased. It also recommended 10 million naira, about $7,000, for each of the 41 survivors.

Illegal mining in Nigeria has grown amid weak regulation and poor enforcement. Analysts say proceeds from the activity help finance armed groups, making crackdowns a security priority, but the inquiry found that the handling of these arrests proved fatal.