How Police Is Shielding Illegal Miners In Nasarawa, NSCDC Tells Senate

The Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) has accused the Nigeria Police Force of shielding illegal miners and launching violent attacks on its operatives to frustrate ongoing prosecutions in Nasarawa State.

In a petition submitted to the Senate Committee on Ethics, Privileges and Public Petitions, Commander of the NSCDC Mining Marshals, John Onoja Attah, alleged that police officers from the Force Intelligence Department (FID) have been obstructing justice by aiding suspects, harassing civil defence officers, and opening fire on them in the line of duty.

According to Attah, his unit, acting on a petition from Capital Apex Synergy Global Limited, arrested one Ali Tanko and a group of Chinese nationals on October 25, 2024, at a mining site in Rafin Gabas, Kokona Local Government Area, for operating without valid mining licences.

He said the suspects confessed to running an illegal mining operation since 2021. Their statements were recorded in the presence of legal representatives and documented on video. The NSCDC subsequently filed two criminal charges — FHC/ABJ/CR/577/2024 and FHC/ABJ/CR/131/2025 — at the Federal High Court in Abuja.

To preserve the site and safeguard evidence, NSCDC officers were deployed to secure the location. However, following the military’s withdrawal from the area on March 26, 2025, police operatives reportedly took control of the site and began obstructing NSCDC personnel.

On April 3, 2025, when civil defence officers returned to the site, Attah said they were ambushed and shot at by police operatives. Four officers — Yarima Yunusa, Insp. Hasuruna Lamshi, Insp. Oliver Kutaya, and Raymond Ibrahim — were disarmed and detained by the police, yet no disciplinary action has been taken.

“This was not a random act. The police are actively trying to sabotage the prosecution and shield those responsible for illegal mining,” Attah said.

He also cited a similar attack on February 12, 2025, in Lege community, Ondo State, where police allegedly opened fire on NSCDC operatives during another operation against illegal mining activities.

In another incident on April 8, 2025, CSP Abdulmajeed of the FID allegedly led about 30 armed officers to the Rafin Gabas site, where four NSCDC operatives — ASCII Salihu Nda Mohammed, ASCII Yusuf Attahiru, CAI Sambi Amos Joel, and CAIII Mustapha Mohammed — were reportedly assaulted and arrested.

Attah alleged that the officers were coerced into implicating him, but they refused. He added that the police have since been investigating the petitioners — Capital Apex Synergy — and issuing invitations to undermine the NSCDC’s legal case.

He said he was shocked to learn that the police obtained a court order barring NSCDC access to the site, effectively halting efforts to secure evidence and continue prosecution.

 “This is a calculated effort to protect illegal miners and derail justice,” Attah stated, calling on the Senate to intervene, investigate the police actions, and uphold the integrity of the anti-illegal mining campaign.