Families of some of the 37 suspected illegal miners who died in the custody of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) in Niger State have rejected ₦100,000 tokens said to have been provided by the Niger State government, describing the money as an attempt to compensate them for the loss of their loved ones instead of delivering justice.
The families said they do not want financial compensation for the deaths, insisting that what they need is accountability and justice for the deceased.
The 37 detainees died after being arrested during anti-illegal mining operations in Niger State on September 15 and 16, 2026.
The victims were among scores of people arrested around the M.I. Wushishi and Lukoto areas before being taken into NSCDC custody in Minna, the state capital.
The deaths have triggered public outrage, protests and calls for an independent investigation into the circumstances surrounding the incident.
The NSCDC initially said the detainees were found dead following a suspected disease outbreak, while survivors and relatives have raised allegations concerning overcrowding, poor detention conditions and treatment of the detainees.
The exact cause of death remains subject to investigation.
Following the incident, President Bola Tinubu directed a comprehensive investigation, while the Minister of Interior, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, constituted a 10-member independent investigative committee to establish what happened and recommend measures to prevent a recurrence.
Twenty-one NSCDC personnel were initially suspended, with the number later increased to 24 after additional officers were identified for investigation.
But while the government has moved to investigate the deaths, relatives of the victims say the ₦100,000 reportedly offered to affected families cannot compensate for the lives lost.
One of the relatives, speaking in Hausa, said the families viewed the money as an attempt to silence them.
“Yes, they are giving us money to silence us, or whatever you may call it. That is what we are asking about. They have given us money to silence us,” the relative said.
Asked who brought the money to them, another family member explained why they had advised their children not to benefit from it.
“Regarding the money that was brought, we are certainly telling our children to listen to us. If we have been wronged, we have been wronged, and we have left everything to Allah,” the family member said.
“But we have told our children, as far as we are able to advise them, to return the money to them because they cannot benefit from the blood of their relatives. They will not eat that money.”
The relative said the deceased miners had been earning their livelihood from mining and questioned why the families should receive only ₦100,000 after their loved ones had died in custody.
“Today, they have gone into the mine, and by the power of Allah, Allah gives them more than three hundred thousand [naira] for them to live on and take care of their needs,” the relative said.
“But if they see that people are being sent to the mines and our children are being killed, then why should they bring them one hundred thousand naira? They will not benefit from it. They will never benefit from it.”
The family member said the relatives were more interested in justice than compensation.
“I am telling our children that the advice I have given them, with Allah’s permission, is to hold firmly to Allah and hold firmly to the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him,” the person said.
“They should go into the mines, with Allah’s permission, and Allah will protect them for us. They will earn a reasonable amount. And wherever there is an oppressor, may Allah deal with him. Whoever seeks to have our children killed, may Allah deal with him.”
The relative added that the families would not abandon the matter until justice was done.
“And having seen our children who were killed, we will never abandon their case. Allah will ensure that justice is done for each and every one of our children. Our children and our younger ones were all killed, and we have been wronged,” the person said.
“And they will never benefit from this money. We have said that they should not accept it, and, with Allah’s permission, they should continue going into the mines.”
Another grieving mother, when asked about the ₦100,000 payment, said the money appeared to place a value on the lives of the deceased.
“Indeed, Alhamdulillah, Alhamdulillah. I have nothing to say. As for this money they brought for them, it is as if they are trying to place a value on their lives because they were not their relatives,” she said.
“If their relatives were still alive today and were with them, they would be worth more than this money.”
The woman said the families wanted the government to ensure that anyone found responsible for the deaths faced consequences.
“But what we want is for the money to be used against the person who committed this terrible act; something should also be done to him,” she said.
“The government should show him that we too are human beings and that we too have feelings. Let us have at least a little peace, because, by Allah, you cannot simply kill a person and walk away as if nothing happened.”
The woman also said the families had not seen meaningful assistance from the government apart from what they had heard about.
“As women, we only hear that things are being done. We have never actually experienced or seen it. Even our children, we have never received anything that we could give to them,” she said.
She said the deaths had left some families with children who had lost their fathers and questioned how the affected households would survive after the government’s crackdown on mining.
“Some people have three children who are now orphans. Some have nothing at all. Others would normally go and do gold mining so that they could return home and feed their children. Now that has been stopped; what option do they have? What option do they have now?” she asked.
“All we can do is hold firmly to Allah and hold firmly to the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him.”
Despite their anger and grief, the families also urged the younger generation not to retaliate.
“We have told our children, ‘Please, my children and my grandchildren, be patient. Be patient. We have already been wronged; do not retaliate. Leave them to Allah. Allah will avenge you,’” the relative said.
The person further advised that if the families eventually received the money, it should not be used for personal benefit.
“Be patient. My children, be patient. Take this money and buy water containers and donate them to the mosque. Do not spend any of it on yourselves,” the relative said.
“Give it to orphans as well. Alhamdulillah, that will be good.”
The families also described the deaths as unprecedented in their years of involvement in gold mining.
“What happened to us — we have been involved in gold mining, but we have never seen anything like this. We have never experienced this before,” the relative said.
“In the villages, village after village, there is hardly anywhere where my friends have not heard about this. But we have never seen anything like this.”
According to the family member, foreign individuals had previously visited mining areas to inspect and measure land without the miners experiencing anything comparable to the recent arrests and deaths.
“The foreigners used to come and measure the land, but they did not care about us. They did not care about what we were doing. Sometimes they would ask us to show them what we had found. We would show them, and they would see it. Then they would give us something and leave,” the person said.
“But we had never seen anything like this. Now, at this time, our children have been arrested, and they have even been killed because of the gold-bearing land.”
The relative explained that some detainees were subsequently subjected to demands involving their land, bail or other conditions.
“And after arresting them, they say it is either the land, or bail, or they should give up the land. Is that how things are done here?” the person asked.
The Niger State government confirmed that 37 suspected illegal miners died while in NSCDC custody and said forensic and medical examinations, including autopsies, were being conducted to establish the scientific cause of the deaths.
The Federal Government subsequently constituted an independent 10-member committee, headed by a retired senior police officer and including representatives of the legal profession, medical experts, the Miners Association of Nigeria, the Niger State Government, the Minna Emirate Council, the media and civil society. The committee was given two weeks to complete its work and submit its report.
