The International Human Rights Commission (IHRC) has released the names of 37 suspected illegal miners who allegedly died while in the custody of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) in Niger State.

International peace ambassador at the IHRC, Awaisu Giwa, said the victims were among scores of suspects arrested during operations conducted on September 15 and 16 around the Lt Gen Mohammed Inuwa Wushishi Estate in Minna, the Niger State capital. The commission said it obtained an initial list of the deceased from records at the General Hospital, Minna mortuary.

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Giwa told TheCable that the list was provided by a mortuary attendant on the instruction of the hospital’s Chief Medical Director. He said the commission plans to obtain the names on the hospital’s official letterhead to formally document the identities of the deceased.

According to Giwa, four additional names were subsequently brought to the commission by relatives who said their family members were missing. The four names were Mu’awiya AbdulKarim, Abdul Gafar Abubakar, Usman Haruna and Yaro Salihu Soba, who were not included in the initial General Hospital list.

The IHRC said the documentation would also be used to support efforts to seek compensation for the families of those who died. The circumstances surrounding the deaths and the allegations concerning the treatment of the suspects remain matters requiring official clarification from the relevant authorities.

The 37 names released by the commission are

Ibrahim Sani,

Fahad Sa’adu,

Abdulsalam Ismail,

Usman Aliyu,

Abubakar Alhaji, Sani Nasir, Sanusi Khalid, Ahmad Aliyu, Safiyanu Abdullahi, Suleiman Dantala, Idris Haruna, Sani Yakubu, Safiyanu Abubakar, Abdullahi Abubakar, Abubakar Musa, Abdul Mudassir, Suleiman Lawal, Usman Abdullahi, Samuel Sambo, Ibrahim Musa, Yusuf Nasiru, Umar Lawal, Isyaku Amisu, Bissallah Adamu, Abdulbari Suleiman, Shafisu Lado, Usman Ahmad, Usman Ibrahim, Sani Isyaku, Musa Ibrahim, Idris Bashir, Kabiru Suleiman, Emmanuel Emeka, Mu’awiya AbdulKarim, Abdul Gafar Abubakar, Usman Haruna and Yaro Salihu Soba.