The Inspector-General of Police, IGP Olatunji Disu, has pledged a full investigation into the deaths of 37 suspected illegal miners in NSCDC custody in Niger State.
IGP Disu, who made the pledge while condoling the people and government of Niger State over the incident, said the police will not compromise efforts to establish how the detainees died and will be transparent in their findings.
The Niger State Governor, Umar Bago, has also declared a 6pm to 6am curfew across the state to restore law and order following protests that erupted.
IGP Disu, who was received by Governor Bago at the government house, said the police had taken charge of the scene to preserve evidence, assuring that nothing will be removed or added, adding that tactical teams had already moved around the affected locations.
He said the police would work with the state government’s committee of inquiry, the NSCDC, and other security agencies to unravel the cause of the deaths.
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For Niger State Governor Umar Bago, the imposition of the 6pm to 6am curfew across the state became necessary due to the destruction of public assets as a result of protests by irate youths.
The governor said samples had been collected from the bodies and mining sites by teams from the police and other agencies to determine whether poisoning, radiation, hazardous substances, overcrowding, or suffocation played any role in the deaths.
As of the time of this report, a drive around the city centre showed that the curfew has already taken effect as the streets had gone quiet.
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(Editor: Ebuwa Omo-Osagie)
