37 Die in Nigerian Custody; Police Tear-Gas Protest
37 Die in Nigerian Custody; Police Tear-Gas Protest
The News
At least 37 men arrested as suspected illegal miners were found dead in government custody in Nigeria's north-central Niger state, and police have now fired tear gas at crowds demanding justice for them.
The men had been picked up by a paramilitary force that raided suspected illegal gold mines, according to Reuters, and were held at a civil defence detention facility, according to France 24.
Officials blame a disease outbreak. A survivor says the detainees suffocated, Al Jazeera reports, and other accounts cite overcrowding and poor ventilation in the cell.
The Numbers
The Associated Press, Deutsche Welle, France 24 and Al Jazeera all put the toll at at least 37. Reuters reported at least 33 detainees found dead. Nigerian authorities have not published a final count.
Timeline
A paramilitary agency raided suspected illegal gold mines in central Nigeria and detained the men, Reuters reported.
Nigerian authorities launch an investigation after the suspected illegal miners are found dead in a civil defence detention facility in Niger state, France 24 reported. The Associated Press reported the deaths the same day, with officials blaming disease.
Residents of a city in central Nigeria take to the streets in protest, Reuters reported.
Police fire tear gas at protesters gathered over the deaths, The Independent reported. Al Jazeera reports police are probing the deaths.
Reactions
Nigerian officials have attributed the deaths to an outbreak of disease inside the facility, according to the Associated Press, Deutsche Welle and Al Jazeera.
That account is disputed by a survivor, who told reporters the men suffocated, Al Jazeera reported. Deutsche Welle reported that accounts of the incident cite overcrowding and poor ventilation rather than illness.
Protesters in the streets are demanding justice for the 37 dead, The Independent reported. Police answered the gathering with tear gas.
What's Next
A police investigation into the deaths is underway, Al Jazeera reported, and the authorities' inquiry opened Thursday is continuing.
Two questions are unresolved: the official cause of death — disease, as officials say, or suffocation in an overcrowded cell, as a survivor says — and the final toll, which sources put at 33 or 37. Expect an official finding, and further protests if the state's account holds.
More
The men were being held as suspects, not convicts, after raids on suspected illegal gold mining operations, according to Reuters. No charges or court appearances have been reported.
Poll
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