Families of suspected illegal miners who died in Nigerian detention accuse officials of mistreatment

ABUJA, Nigeria (AP) — Lawan Mohammed is distraught over the death of his 25-year-old son Sulieman who was found dead in the custody of a Nigerian security agency in the north-central region of the country. He said Sulieman was a motorcycle mechanic in Niger state and was on his way home when he and some friends were arrested by personnel from the Nigeria Security and Civil Defense Corps, or NSCDC. “I went there the following morning to give him food, only to hear that he was dead,” Mohammed said.

On Thursday, Sulieman was found dead in a cell of the NSCDC along with 36 other detainees. A total of 67 people suspected of being miners working illegally were held in a cell, and 37 of them probably died of suffocation, Niger state Gov. The suspects were arrested between Tuesday and Wednesday.

The security agency on Thursday blamed the deaths on a possible disease outbreak. An investigation is underway to determine what caused the deaths. On Saturday, the Nigerian government named a 10-member committee drawn from the legal, security, mining and medical professions, and announced the suspension of 20 more NSCDC personnel.

The head of the security agency in Niger state had been suspended on Friday. “Any attempt to destroy or conceal evidence, intimidate witnesses or obstruct the investigation will be treated as a serious offense,” interior minister Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo said in a statement. Mohammed said: “I had a lot of expectations for my son, but now (they have) been shattered completely.

They chose to beat him up, burst his head open. I want the government to make sure that justice prevails.” Concerns about the treatment of detainees There have long been concerns about the treatment of suspects in Nigerian detention centers. In 2025, the National Human Rights Commission said it received 371,622 complaints of rights violations, including unlawful arrest and detention, denial of justice and torture.

“It raises serious questions about detention standards, operational planning, accountability and respect for due process,” Kehinde Giwa, a security analyst at Lagos-based SBM Intelligence, said about the deaths of the suspects. “Even when arrests are lawful, suspects must be kept in safe conditions and given timely medical attention.” Parent says his child was maltreated in custody Saba Usman alleg… The suspects were arrested between Tuesday and Wednesday.The security agency on Thursday blamed the deaths on a possible disease outbreak.