EXCLUSIVE: Report details NSCDC officers’ contributions to detention tragedy in Niger, recommends dismissal, prosecution

A federal panel of investigation into the deaths of 33 detainees at a Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) facility in Minna, Niger State, has detailed how senior officers authorised operations without clearance, ignored warnings of possible suffocation and failed to intervene despite repeated cries for help.

The Independent Investigation Committee’s final report described how an investigation officer inspected the overcrowded detention cell but left without ordering an intervention, while a guard refused to open the door even as detainees screamed and banged the door and walls for hours.

It also documented the detention of children alongside adults, alleged interference with evidence after the deaths and the unlawful detention of a man arrested over a private debt.

The report attributed the cruel and degrading detention conditions leading to the deats of 33 detainees, including 14 children, to the actions and negligence of the officers.

These findings formed the basis of the 10-member committee’s recommendations for the dismissal of six NSCDC officers, including the suspended Niger State commandant, Suberu Siyaka. The panel also recommeded criminal prosecution of Mr Siyaka alongside four others.

The report was submitted by the Jonathan Kure-led panel to Interior Minister Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo on 27 October, following an investigation into the deaths on 16 and 17 September. The committee’s conclusions are investigative findings, not criminal convictions.

Commandant Suberu Siyaka authorised operation without clearance

The committee found that Mr Siyaka authorised operations against suspected illegal miners in and around Minna on 15 and 16 September without an approved operational order, adequate planning or clearance from NSCDC National Headquarters. He also bypassed the corps’ zonal supervisory authority and did not involve the specialised Mining Marshal Unit stationed in Minna.

The operations resulted in the arrest of 75 people, who were subsequently detained. Mr Siyaka told investigators that the detention facilities were designed to accommodate 40 people in two cells. The committee found, however, that approximately 50 male detainees, including 17 children, were held in one overcrowded cell.

The report faulted the commandant for failing to ensure proper supervision and lawful detention procedures.

Mr Siyaka told the committee that he left the command at about 6 p.m. on 16 September and was informed of the deaths by telephone at approximately 7 a.m. the following day. He said he was shocked and subsequently notified the NSCDC Commandant-General, the Niger State governor and other security agencies.

The committee also faulted him for issuing a public statement attributing the deaths to a disease outbreak, which it characterised as an attempt to conceal the circumstances of the deaths.

It recommended his dismissal. It also recommended that the Attorney General of the Federation prosecute him and four others for murder, torture, inhumane and degrading treatment and criminal negligence.

Investigation chief inspected cell but took no action

Sunday Oluwadare, a chief suprintendent of corps who headed the command’s Investigation Unit, was accused of facilitating unlawful detention and disregarding legal and medical warnings.

The report found that he authorised the detention of suspects, including children, without complying with applicable procedures. It also identified two detainees held without remand warrants: Emmanuel Emeka, 25, arrested over a private debt, and Adamu Abdulkadir, 25, a suspected illegal miner who had reportedly been detained for 18 days.

On the evening of 16 September, guards alerted Mr Oluwadare to extreme heat inside the detention cell. According to the committee, he approached the cell and shone the torchlight of his telephone through its perforated door to observe the conditions. He then left without directing officers to decongest the cell or take other effective measures.

A legal officer had earlier warned that the suspected mining offence was bailable and raised concerns about the detention of minors. A medical worker also warned that overcrowding could cause suffocation. The committee found that these warnings were ignored.

It recommended Mr Oluwadare’s dismissal and criminal prosecution.

Guard refused to open cell despite screams

The report attributed separate failures to Usman Ndamaka, a suprintendent of corps in charge of cell guards, and Hassan Mohammed, an assistant suprintendent of corps I who served as the night guard.

Mr Ndamaka admitted that approximately 50 male detainees, including children, were confined in a cell he said should accommodate about 20 people. He instructed Mr Mohammed not to open the door without armed backup, warning that the detainees might be attempting to escape.

Mr Mohammed, who assumed duty at 8 p.m. on 16 September, admitted hearing desperate cries and persistent banging from the cell. Two armoury guards also heard the disturbance and urged him to intervene. According to their testimony, Mr Mohammed refused to open the door, citing his superior’s instruction.

One of the armoury guards told the committee that the screaming eventually ceased at about 2.30 a.m. The committee found that Mr Mohammed neither opened the cell nor organised reinforcement to inspect it.

It recommended Mr Mohammed dismissal and prosecution.

Supervisor missed emergency call

The committee separately examined Mr Ndamaka’s failure to respond to an emergency telephone call from the night guard.

The report records that Mr Mohammed called him at approximately 10.37 p.m. on 16 September. Mr Ndamaka said he did not answer because he was asleep. He returned the call at about 6 a.m. the following day and reported for duty at approximately 7 a.m.

When officers opened the cell, they discovered that 33 detainees, including 14 children, had died.

The committee faulted Mr Ndamaka for issuing the instruction that prevented intervention, failing to respond to the emergency and neglecting his supervisory responsibilities. It also found that he participated in cleaning and altering the detention area after the deaths.

An arms commander, Annas Shittu, a chief suprintendent of corps, told investigators that he saw Mr Ndamaka and four others washing the area before independent forensic examiners arrived.

The committee recommended Mr Ndamaka’s dismissal. It further recommended his prosecution under Section 167 of the Penal Code over alleged interference with the crime scene.

Profiling officer detained children alongside adults, probe finds

The committee implicated Abubakar Dabban, a deputy suprintendent of corps and profiling officer, in processing children into adult detention cells.

According to the report, Mr Dabban recorded four children under the age of 14 during profiling but nevertheless processed them into detention alongside adults. He also admitted that he had never read the NSCDC Standard Operating Procedure.

Survivors alleged that cash and gold dust belonging to detainees were not properly accounted for. During an identification exercise, some survivors identified Mr Dabban as an officer who allegedly intimidated a detainee after the detainee complained that N1.35 million was missing from his bag. Other allegations concerned approximately N130,000 to N170,000 in cash and gold dust that were not recorded in the exhibit register.

Mr Dabban denied intimidating detainees or collecting money or gold dust from the detainees.

The committee nevertheless faulted his handling of detainees and exhibits and recommended his dismissal. It also called for an investigation by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission and the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission into allegations of extortion and exhibit mismanagement.

Mr Dabban was not among the five officers recommended for criminal prosecution over the custodial deaths.

Officer implicated in unlawful private-debt detention

The committee also investigated the circumstances surrounding the arrest and detention of Emmanuel Emeka, 25, who died alongside the suspected miners.

Mr Emeka was arrested on 12 September over a private debt complaint associated with Wilfred Ugwu of Okoma Pharmacy Ltd, Minna. According to the report, NSCDC officer Musa Marafa, an assistant suprintendent of corps I, arrested him without a warrant, after which he remained in NSCDC custody until his death on 17 September.

The committee recorded that Mr Marafa admitted charging a N25,000 tracking fee, explaining that the command lacked the equipment needed for tracking operations.

The report found that Mr Emeka’s arrest and continued detention were unlawful. It recommended Mr Marafa’s dismissal and prosecution, alongside further investigation into the roles of the complainant and the NSCDC area commander involved in the matter.

Discrepancy in administrative sanctions

Beyond the six officers recommended for dismissal, the committee proposed administrative sanctions against four others for management failures.

Its formal recommendations named Philips Ajayi, Agrahau John Chagwa, Obafemi Elvis and Garba Aminu Sule Usman.

Although the report found Abdul Shehu, the command’s second-in-command, as having exhibited management incompetence by failing to advise the commandant it recommended no sanction against him.

The report recorded Mr Shehu, a deputy commandant of corps, as informing the committee that he was relegated to the background in the operation.

He testified that upon discovering the fatalities on 17 September, he issued N10,000 cash to Obafemi Elvis, also a deputy commandant of corps, to purchase white burial shrouds from Kasuwan Gwari market to cover and evacuate the corpses to the morgue.

The report also accused Garba Aminu Sule Usman, a deputy suprintendent of corps, of “gross comptence” without giving details. It named him among those recommended for administrative disciplinary sanctions.

It also recommends lifting the suspensions of several officers found not culpable in the deaths and commending personnel who raised warnings or assisted the investigation.

Committee recommends criminal proceedings

The committee asked the Civil Defence, Correctional, Fire and Immigration Services Board to convene an extraordinary session within 30 days to consider the dismissal of the six officers. It also recommended that the case file be transmitted to the Attorney-General of the Federation for criminal prosecution.

The proposed offences include murder, torture, inhuman and degrading treatment, and criminal negligence.

The committee further recommended reforms to NSCDC supervision, detention procedures, documentation and emergency response arrangements.

The Federal Ministry of Interior confirmed receiving the report on 27 October, with the minister indicating that it would be forwarded to the Attorney-General of the Federation.

The materials reviewed by PREMIUM TIMES do not establish whether the recommended dismissals or criminal proceedings have commenced.