EXCLUSIVE: NSCDC ‘s Niger commandant fabricated ‘disease outbreak’ to cover up 33 deaths in cell – Report

The Niger State Commandant of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), Siyaka Suberu, personally authored and released a statement falsely attributing the deaths of 33 detainees to a “disease outbreak”, an investigation committee has found.

The Independent Investigation Committee said the statement was fabricated and intended to cover up the deaths in an overcrowded cell of the NSCDC state command in Minna, Niger State.

The 10-member committee chaired by Jonathan Kure, in its report submitted to the Minister of Interior, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, on 27 October, described the statement as an attempt to mislead the public about the circumstances surrounding the deaths.

It said Mr Suberu, who was suspended in the aftermath of the tragedy, expressed shock at the turn of events and reported that he immediately called the commandant general of the NSCDC, the Niger State governor and other sister agencies.

“He also personally issued a public press release attributing the 33 deaths to a ‘disease outbreak’ to conceal the custodial tragedy,” a copy of the report obtained by PREMIUM TIMES stated. “He attributed the tragedy to the failings of his subordinates and expressed his regrets.”

What probe committee found

The panel’s findings contradict the command’s disease outbreak explanation.

The committee said medical examinations instead pointed to environmental asphyxia, caused by confinement in a severely overcrowded and poorly ventilated cell, with heat stress and dehydration as contributing factors.

It said post-mortem examinations were conducted on only three of the deceased, identified as Emmanuel Emeka, Kabiru Suleiman and Idris Haruna. The other 30 had been buried before the pathology team arrived.

“Autopsy and histology reports are most consistent with death from environmental hypoxia (asphyxia) during confinement in a severely overcrowded, poorly ventilated cell,” the report said.

The committee noted that the cause of death of the 30 unexamined bodies could not be medically determined. However, it said the shared circumstances and timing suggested that they died through the same mechanism as the three examined victims.

It also said infection, trauma, custodial violence and natural diseases were unlikely to explain the cluster of deaths.

The medical conclusions, however, remain provisional pending toxicology results.

The committee further found that the command failed to follow established operational procedures during the raid that led to the arrests.

According to the report, the operation sidelined the specialised Mining Marshals Unit, and no operational order or proper planning was undertaken.

The command also failed to apply standard operating procedures and the “Open Detention” protocols for mass arrests, which had been used during a joint operation with the Mining Marshals Unit in June.

The report said the commandant’s actions and the failure to follow operational procedures contributed to the circumstances that led to the deaths.

It also found that the detention register for 16 September was missing and that officers tampered with the scene before independent forensic examination.

“The cells were fraudulently re-numbered” after they had been scrubbed, washed and disinfected, the committee said.

On allegations of physical assault, the committee said the post-mortem examinations did not identify physical assault, blunt-force injuries or violence in custody as the immediate cause of death.

Commandant general’s reaction

The report noted NSCDC commandant general Ahmed Audi’s outright condemnation of the deaths and rebuttal to the disease outbreak claim of the state commandant in the wake of the incident.

Mr Audi, who reportedly described the incident as an inexcusable “aberration,” said the national headquarters had zero prior knowledge of the mass raids.

He added that Mr Suberu had exercised discretion without clearance from the headquarters and must therefore bear full consequences.

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“He officially debunked CC Suberu’s fabricated press release claiming a ‘disease outbreak,’ ordering the National PRO to rebut it, noting ‘we cannot defend illegality’,” the report read.

The report said the commandant general also emphasised that “open detention” protocols (holding suspects in a guarded, ventilated courtyard) should have been utilised when numbers exceeded cell capacity.

However, survivors reported being beaten at the mining sites during their arrest.

The committee authenticated 33 deaths, including 14 minors, and identified 41 survivors, nine of whom were also minors.

It recommended disciplinary and legal action against officers found responsible, alongside compensation for the bereaved families and survivors.