A statement by the NSCDC Public Relations Officer (PRO), Babawale Afolabi, on Thursday in Abuja, said that the incident took place on Sunday.

Afolabi said that the officer, who was arrested by the FCT Police Command, acted unprofessionally.

He quoted the NSCDC Commandant General, Ahmed Audi, as directing an Orderly Room Trial to determine the personnel’s level of culpability in the alleged offence.

Audi ​‌‍‍‌‍⁠‍⁠⁠‍‌‍​​‌‍‍​‌​emphasised the corps zero tolerance for misuse of firearms or any form of professional misconduct.

“The action of the officer is a gross violation of the rules of engagement and misuse of firearms which is a breach of the Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) of the corps and as such will attract appropriate sanction.

“The alleged officer is therefore stripped of all official responsibilities and relieved of his assignment pending the conclusion of all disciplinary proceedings by the already well-established committee.

“Outcome of the trial and internal disciplinary process will be made public upon conclusion,” the commandant general said.

The NSCDC boss reassured members of the public of the corps’ commitment to protecting lives and upholding professional standards at all times, no matter the circumstances.

According to him, the corps will never tolerate or shield any officer whose actions jeopardises public safety or violates operational guidelines.

The ICIR reports that the officer’s suspension came two days after the Federal Government’s independent investigative committee that probed the deaths of 37 suspected illegal miners in the custody of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) in Niger State found that the victims died of suffocation.

The deaths occurred under the watch of the suspended Niger State NSCDC Commandant, Suberu Siyaka Aniviye.

Aniyiye was suspended by the Federal Government and was ordered to face probe in Abuja.

The ICIR reported that the suspected miners, comprising minors and other young people, were confirmed dead hours after operatives of the command locked them up following their arrest at mining sites around the M.I. Wushishi/Lukoto axis of Minna between September 15 and 16, 2026.

Aniyiye had claimed in a statement he personally signed that the miners died from suspected disease outbreak.

However, the committee which probed the incident said the NSCDC officers suffocated the miners to death.

The committee recommended ₦1.4 billion in compensation for the late miners’ families and 44 survivors.

The committee’s chairman and former Deputy Director-General of the State Security Services, Jonathan Kure, disclosed the findings on Tuesday, October 27, while presenting the panel’s report to the Minister of Interior, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, in Abuja.

Kure said the deaths were avoidable, adding that the victims, including 14 minors, were detained under inhuman conditions.

Explaining that asphyxiation (or suffocation) occurs when the body is deprived of sufficient oxygen, potentially causing unconsciousness, organ damage and death, the panel recommended the summary dismissal of the suspended Niger State NSCDC Commandant and other officers directly involved in the detention of the suspects and the circumstances leading to their deaths.