By Awwal Umar Kontagora An Assistant Director at the Federal Ministry of Solid Minerals in Niger State, Hajiya Halima Omolara Ib...
By Awwal Umar Kontagora
An Assistant Director at the Federal Ministry of Solid Minerals in Niger State, Hajiya Halima Omolara Ibrahim, has told the Justice Mohammed Mohammed Judicial Commission of Inquiry that operatives of the Mining Marshal allegedly assaulted, tortured and humiliated her while she was performing her official duties at a mining site in Kwakuti, Paikoro Local Government Area.
Ibrahim, who testified before the commission, alleged that the incident occurred on April 17, 2026, when operatives of the Mining Marshal, led by SC Jibrin Mohammed, stormed the site and arrested several artisanal miners alongside her, despite her identification as a Federal Government official.
She said the operatives disregarded her official identity card and physically assaulted her before forcing her into their vehicle and taking her to their headquarters in Minna, where she was allegedly detained from 6 p.m. to 11 p.m.
“I was beaten, molested, humiliated, strangled and beaten to a state of pulp. I was dragged on the ground before they bundled me into their waiting van and took me to their headquarters in Minna,” she told the commission.
The witness said she sustained bruises on her face, while her clothes were torn during the alleged assault.
Ibrahim explained that, as the official responsible for artisanal mining activities in Niger State, her duties included registering artisanal miners, supervising their operations and ensuring compliance with relevant mining regulations.
She disclosed that her office had registered approximately 400 artisanal miners to engage in mining activities alongside licensed operators across the state.
According to her, the ministry's enforcement unit had established a working relationship with the Mining Marshal to facilitate joint operations against illegal mining.
However, she expressed concern that Mining Marshal operatives allegedly conducted enforcement operations at mining sites without notifying or involving her office, sometimes harassing miners whom she said were duly licensed to operate.
“To my greatest surprise, the operatives of the Mining Marshal will carry out their operations at mining sites on their own without involving my office.
“I will just receive a phone call informing me that the Mining Marshal is at a mining site harassing the miners. Some of these miners are licensed to carry out their mining activities, yet they still go about harassing them on the site,” she said.
On Alleged Deaths of Miners
Testifying on the deaths of 37 suspected illegal miners who reportedly died in the custody of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) between September 16 and 17, 2026, Ibrahim said her office was not informed of the enforcement operation that preceded the incident.
She noted that the deaths attracted public attention because of the number of miners involved and the fact that they occurred while the victims were in the custody of the corps.
The witness further alleged that there had been previous incidents in which miners were killed during enforcement operations at mining sites in Korokpa, Kwakuti and Garafini in Borgu Local Government Area, but that the incidents were not widely reported.
“Men of the NSCDC have the records of alleged killings of miners on mining sites without anybody knowing. They have killed miners in Korokpa area, they have killed in Kwakuti, and they have killed in Garafini area of Borgu Local Government.
“All these alleged killings went unreported. The death of the 37 suspected illegal miners in their custody became public because it happened in their office, and there was no way they could cover it up,” she told the commission.
Ibrahim also alleged that Mining Marshal operatives extorted between ₦6 million and ₦7 million from miners and confiscated quantities of gold extracted from the mining sites.
She subsequently tendered several documents in support of her testimony, which were admitted in evidence by the commission.
The Justice Mohammed Mohammed Judicial Commission of Inquiry is investigating the circumstances surrounding the deaths of 37 suspected illegal miners while in NSCDC custody in Niger State.
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