The NSCDC, Nigeria’s paramilitary force, conducted a two‑day operation in the Wushishi‑Lukoto area west of Minna, seizing 37 miners suspected of illegal gold extraction.
The agency initially suggested a disease outbreak might explain the deaths, but later clarified that the cause of death had not been established and would be determined through medical examinations.
Interior Minister Olubunmi Tunji‑Ojo ordered the immediate suspension of the Niger State NSCDC commandant, Suberu Siyaka Aniviye, pending a full investigation. The mother of one detainee, Shafa'atu Suleiman, told reporters outside the hospital on Thursday that she had found her son, Abdullahi, dead in a cramped NSCDC cell after being denied food deliveries and being asked to pay 100,000 naira for release.
Protests broke out in Minna on Thursday night, with youths chanting "Justice must be done" and damaging vehicles; by Friday morning the city calmed but security forces were heavily deployed across parts of the capital.
Illegal mining has long plagued Nigeria, with authorities citing environmental damage and revenue loss; this incident adds to the growing list of controversies surrounding the sector.