The Commander of the Mining Marshals of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), John Onoja, has dismissed a police report that allegedly linked one of his officers to more than ₦2 billion in suspicious financial transactions following the death of a mining marshal operative.
Onoja also accused foreign nationals engaged in illegal mining of orchestrating efforts to tarnish the image of the Mining Marshals.
Reacting to a viral report titled “Nigeria Police Arrest Three NSCDC Officers over colleague’s Death, Trace Over ₦2 Billion To Suspect’s Bank Account,” the commander described the publication as inaccurate and deceptive.
According to him, the bank account referenced in the report handled less than ₦1 million in transactions over the past year.
“The Zenith Bank account number 1008392780 of Jibrin Labaran from the statement of account of the last year contains a total debit of ₦760,457.25 and total credit of ₦760,129.85, being his emolument as an officer, as against a ₦2 billion claim in the purported police investigation report that was published online,” he said.
Onoja further accused Team N of the Force Intelligence Department (FID), headed by Abdulmajeed Abisoye Oyewumi, of persistently obstructing lawful operations carried out by the Mining Marshals in Nasarawa State.
“There is a history of consistent blackmail by Team N of the Force Intelligence Department of the Nigeria Police Force headed by one CSP Abdulmajeed Abisoye Oyewumi, over one year now on the same site as he has consistently disrupted Mining Marshals’ lawful operations on the site,” he said.
He alleged that the same police unit had earlier arrested some Mining Marshals personnel and made attempts to frustrate prosecutions involving suspected illegal miners.
The commander disclosed that he had formally requested the Inspector General of Police to transfer the investigation into the death of Deputy Superintendent of Corps Agada Levi to the Department of State Services (DSS).
“Hence, my letter to the IGP requesting the matter be transferred to DSS for impartial review and handling. The modest thing to do was for the police to transfer the case to DSS,” he said.
Onoja stated that the Mining Marshals supported Levi’s family after his death and fully funded his burial.
“I called a meeting of family members in my office and set up a burial committee, and all programmes and expenses were carried out from the committee without requesting a kobo from the family,” he said.
He added that associates of the Mining Marshals later contributed ₦3 million to the late officer’s widow.
The commander also alleged that foreign nationals whose illegal mining sites had been shut down were financing campaigns against the unit.
“We have it on good authority that the Chinese men whose illegal mining site was shut down in Nasarawa State are the ones bankrolling CSP Abdulmajeed Abisoye Oyewumi for this blackmail.
“The real players in the background that are using CSP Abdulmajeed Abisoye Oyewumi are the foreign nationals that are united as common enemies against the mining marshals,” he said.
Onoja further claimed that police officers accompanied foreign nationals during an attempt to arrest the lead counsel prosecuting cases on behalf of the Mining Marshals.
“During the said illegal outing to arrest our lawyer, the soldiers standing guard in the estate did not allow them because, surprisingly, they were in the company of Chinese men to arrest our lawyer in his residence,” he said.
While acknowledging Levi’s death, Onoja said it marked the first fatality recorded by the Mining Marshals since the unit was established over two years ago.
“We are not denying that Agada Levi died in the line of duty, sadly. But none of the Management Team of Mining Marshals knows anything about his death.
“CSP Abdulmajeed Abisoye Oyewumi is only trying to use the occasion to achieve his obvious unfinished objectives against the mining marshals,” he said.
He urged Nigerians to remain calm as the matter undergoes further review by relevant authorities.
“To this end, while the DSS begins to look into the investigation of this case on our request, we urge the public and all patriotic Nigerians who are reading between the lines to be calm, and to discountenance their cheap lies and blackmail,” he said.
