SERAP urges UN to demand answers over 37 deaths in NSCDC custody, Minna force

The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has called on four United Nations Special Rapporteurs to urgently intervene over the deaths of 37 people in the custody of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) in Niger State and the reported use of lethal force against protesters in Minna.

In an urgent appeal dated 18 September 2026 and signed by its deputy director, Kolawole Oluwadare (reference 2s3wtdb5), SERAP addressed the Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions; the Special Rapporteur on freedom of peaceful assembly and association; the Special Rapporteur on freedom of opinion and expression; and the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders.

The organisation stated that the 37 persons were arrested on 15 and 16 September during NSCDC operations targeting suspected illegal and artisanal mining in the M.I. Wushishi and Lukoto areas of Niger State. They were subsequently detained in Minna. Their deaths were reported on 17 September, prompting protests in the state capital the following day.

SERAP noted that security forces reportedly deployed tear gas and opened fire as demonstrations continued, with accounts of the use of live ammunition and resulting deaths and serious injuries among protesters. The precise circumstances of both the custody deaths and the response to the protests remain to be independently established.

“Thirty-seven people went into NSCDC custody. They came out dead. Nigerians deserve to know what happened,” SERAP said. The group stressed that every death or serious injury in custody must be promptly, thoroughly, independently, impartially, transparently and effectively investigated, with perpetrators identified and brought to justice. It recalled that any loss of life resulting from the excessive use of force without strict compliance with the principles of necessity and proportionality constitutes an arbitrary deprivation of life and is therefore illegal.

SERAP referenced a 2022 communication by UN Special Procedures mandate holders to the Nigerian Government concerning the #EndSARS protests, in which the experts expressed concern over the reported use of lethal force against unarmed protesters and reminded the authorities of the same international standards.
The organisation is urging the special rapporteurs to:

Urgently communicate with the Nigerian Government concerning the reported deaths of the 37 persons in NSCDC custody and the reported killing and shooting of protesters in Minna, and request detailed information on the circumstances and causes of the deaths, the treatment and conditions of detention, the legal basis for the arrests and detention, and the number and status of protesters killed or injured.

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Call on the authorities to ensure an independent, impartial, prompt, thorough, effective and transparent investigation into the deaths in custody and the reported use of lethal force against protesters, conducted by a body independent of any security agency implicated in the alleged violations, with the findings made public.

Urge the authorities to immediately preserve all relevant evidence, including physical, documentary, digital, medical and forensic evidence, and ensure that families of those who died or were injured have timely access to relevant information concerning the investigations.

Call for accountability and effective remedies, including ensuring that security personnel reasonably suspected of unlawful killings, excessive use of force or other violations are held accountable in accordance with due process, and that victims and their families receive effective remedies, including compensation and other appropriate forms of reparation where violations are established.

Urge the Nigerian Government to protect protesters, journalists, human rights defenders, lawyers, witnesses and relatives of victims from intimidation, harassment, arbitrary arrest and reprisals, and ensure that future policing of demonstrations complies with the principles of legality, necessity and proportionality, including strict adherence to international standards governing the use of firearms.

Request information on measures to prevent recurrence, including appropriate training, operational rules, command accountability and independent oversight of the NSCDC and other law enforcement agencies, and consider any further appropriate action within the Special Procedures’ mandates.

SERAP emphasised that the reported deaths in custody and the subsequent use of force require urgent international scrutiny. “The Nigerian authorities have a responsibility to establish the truth, protect the right to peaceful protest, ensure accountability for unlawful conduct and provide effective remedies to victims and their families,” it said. “The answer to deaths in custody cannot be more deaths on the streets.”

Independent reporting has added further context. The NSCDC initially attributed the deaths to a suspected disease outbreak.

Survivors and other accounts have described severe overcrowding, with reports of more than 60 detainees confined in a single poorly ventilated cell, limited access to food and water, extreme heat, and in some cases alleged physical assault or the spraying of a substance inside the cell shortly before people began collapsing. Bodies were taken to the General Hospital in Minna for examination; some were later buried in accordance with Islamic tradition, raising questions about the completeness of forensic processes.

Niger State Governor Mohammed Umaru Bago confirmed the death toll of 37, ordered an inquiry and noted the suspension of the state NSCDC commandant. The Federal Government, acting through the Minister of Interior, has suspended the Niger State Commandant, Suberu Siyaka Aniviye, along with 20 other officers, and constituted a 10-member independent committee to investigate the arrests, detention conditions, medical care and causes of death, following a directive from President Bola Tinubu.

SERAP maintains that only a fully independent process capable of establishing the identities of all 37 deceased persons, the precise circumstances of their deaths, the conditions of detention and the responsibility of individual officers and commanders can deliver the accountability and justice required.