The military says it has arrested 387 individuals in connection with illegal mining but has handed them over to agencies with prosecutorial power.
The Chief of Defence Staff, Chris Musa, disclosed this on Monday while appearing before the House Committee on Solid Mineral.
Musa, who was represented by the Director of Operations, Air Vice Marshal Nnaemeka Ignatius, said the military is only supporting other security agencies in curbing illegal mining.
“The involvement of the elites in it, we can’t tell, but we know that most of the time when we catch these foreigners, they will tell us that they have connections. I don’t want to say some things, but sometimes you hand these people over and the next thing you see, they’re released,” the Chief of Defence Staff said.
He also disclosed that some illegal miners come from Burkina Faso to operate in Nigeria, adding that the military would back the call for the suspension of mining for a short period.
“We have people from Burkina Faso coming to mine in Nigeria. So the strength of our borders, too, is a factor. Why I’m saying all this is that there’s a need for the government to properly equip those involved to checkmate most of this illegal mining,” he said.
In his remarks, the chairman of the Committee, Jonathan Gwefi, said the government loses over $9 billion to illegal mining activities.
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