The NSCDC Mining Marshals have defended the continued closure of the Stone Rockers Nigeria Limited quarry site in Abuja, insisting that the facility remains a crime scene in an ongoing criminal case before the Federal High Court.
The clarification followed recent media reports on a petition by Stone Rockers Nigeria Limited to President Bola Tinubu and other senior government officials over the 13-month closure of its operations. The company had alleged that the shutdown was unlawful and not backed by any court order.
But the Commander of the Mining Marshals dismissed the allegation, explaining that the quarry was sealed not as an administrative sanction but because it constitutes the locus criminis in a criminal matter currently before the court.
According to him, Stone Rockers Nigeria Limited and its director, Mr Kolawole Olaiya, are standing trial in Charge No. FHC/ABM/VR/338/2026 over alleged illegal mining activities within a mineral title area belonging to Lord’s Career Ventures Nigeria Limited.
He said the prosecution followed extensive investigations triggered by several petitions submitted by the complainant company over a period of more than one year.
The petitions, he explained, were subsequently referred by the Minister of Solid Minerals Development and the Minister of Interior to the Mining Marshals through the Commandant General of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) for investigation and prosecution.
The Commander disclosed that investigators arrested the defendants at coordinates identified as longitude 7°17’24″E and latitude 8°52’11″N.
He said findings by the Mining Marshals showed that the coordinates fell within Mining Lease No. 000395 ML, belonging to Lord’s Career Ventures Nigeria Limited.
He further cited a January 23, 2026 letter from the Mining Cadastre Office, which, according to the agency, confirmed that the disputed coordinates were located within the complainant’s licensed mining area.
The Mining Marshals also said documentary evidence gathered during the investigation would be presented before the court, including correspondence allegedly written by a member of the defence team, Mohammed Olanrewaju Jibril.
According to the Commander, the letter dated August 12, 2025 and allegedly written on the instructions of the defendants contains information relevant to the allegations before the court.
He maintained that the prosecution’s case goes beyond the disputed coordinates and correspondence, describing the documentary evidence assembled during the investigation as substantial.
The Commander also questioned attempts by the defendants to seek administrative intervention while criminal and civil proceedings relating to the dispute remain before the courts.
“The issues raised by the defendants are already the subject of judicial proceedings,” he said, warning against actions capable of undermining or prejudicing the ongoing cases.
He further alleged that the defendants were pursuing “every extrajudicial means” to frustrate the criminal proceedings, arguing that their latest petition to the President did not merit official consideration.
The Commander said the petition was part of what he described as a broader effort to influence public opinion, following what he characterised as unsuccessful attempts to harass him through petitions to the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC).
He, however, maintained that public campaigns and institutional pressure would not deter the Mining Marshals from pursuing the case.
“No matter the level of blackmail and harassment deployed by illegal mining and erring industry players, the Mining Marshals will not be deterred from ensuring that the full weight of the law is pressed very tightly against everyone who breaks the laws in the Nigerian mining sector,” he said.
The Commander also appealed to media organisations to strengthen their editorial gatekeeping and verification processes, particularly when reporting allegations arising from ongoing legal disputes.
According to him, the media remains a critical stakeholder in the Federal Government’s reforms in the solid minerals sector and has an important role in promoting lawful and responsible mining practices.
On workers initially arrested during enforcement operations, the Mining Marshals said prosecutors had earlier amended the charge to exclude them because they were employees of a disclosed principal and might not have possessed the criminal intent required for prosecution.
The agency, however, said subsequent developments, including the participation of some of the workers in protests over the continued closure of the site, had prompted a review of the decision.
The Commander disclosed that prosecutors had been directed to consider relisting the affected workers in the criminal proceedings if further evidence establishes a greater level of involvement in the alleged illegal mining activities.
The Mining Marshals also rejected allegations that the enforcement action was influenced by financial inducement.
According to the agency, although the complainant company had repeatedly complained of financial losses arising from its inability to commence operations due to the alleged encroachment, it did not provide financial support or logistics to the Mining Marshals for the operation that led to the arrests.
The Commander stressed that enforcement decisions were based on evidence gathered during the investigation and not on the financial status of either party.
He reaffirmed the Mining Marshals’ commitment to combating illegal mining and protecting legitimate mineral title holders, insisting that pressure, publicity or alleged blackmail would not deter the agency from enforcing Nigeria’s mining laws.
The dispute between Stone Rockers Nigeria Limited and Lord’s Career Ventures Nigeria Limited has generated multiple legal proceedings and competing narratives, with Stone Rockers maintaining that the closure of its operations was unlawful, while the Mining Marshals insist that the issues are now before the courts for determination.
