CSP Abdulmajid Oyewole Detained as Police Probe NSCDC Clash

Crime, Human Rights, Investigations, National Security

CSP Abdulmajid Oyewole Detained as Police Probe NSCDC Clash

CSP Abdulmajid Oyewole’s reported detention has turned a simmering interagency dispute into a full blown security crisis, after the NSCDC Mining Marshals accused the police’s FID Team N of unlawful interference, selective arrests and attempts to cripple its anti illegal mining operations. What began as a petition over the handling of a death investigation is…

Atlantic Post

June 5, 2026

4–6 minutes

Illegal mining, Mining Marshals, Nasarawa State, National Security, Nigeria Police Force, NSCDC

The clash between the NSCDC Mining Marshals and the Nigeria Police Force has now moved beyond a mere interagency complaint and into a full blown security scandal, with SaharaReporters saying the head of FID Team N, CSP Abdulmajid Oyewole, was grilled and detained after being summoned over allegations of interference in the Marshals’ operations.

The same reporting says the move followed a petition by Mining Marshals commander Attah Onoja, although the published account’s reference to “IGP Olatunji Disu” does not align with official police material, which identifies Kayode Adeolu Egbetokun as Inspector General of Police.

At the heart of the dispute is Rafin Gabas in Kokona Local Government Area of Nasarawa State, where the Mining Marshals say they arrested suspected illegal miners in October 2024 after a petition from Capital Apex Synergy Global Ltd.

The Cable and Daily Trust both report that the suspects included Ali Tanko and several Chinese nationals, who were alleged to have been mining without valid licences and to have admitted operating at the site since 2021.

The matter has since produced Federal High Court cases in Abuja, turning an illegal mining operation into a legal and security battle.

That battle appears to have escalated in April 2025. According to TheCable, Onoja alleged that police officers linked to the Force Intelligence Department arrived at the site on 3 April 2025 and “opened fire on our men”, before a later operation on 8 April led by CSP Abdulmajeed allegedly resulted in the arrest of four Mining Marshals.

Leadership similarly reported allegations that FID operatives shielded suspects from prosecution, intimidated NSCDC personnel and obstructed investigations tied to the site.

If those claims are accurate, they point to a deeper crisis than a simple quarrel over jurisdiction. They suggest a turf war inside Nigeria’s coercive institutions.

The most combustible part of the story remains the death of NSCDC officer Agada Levi Agada, a pastor attached to the Mining Marshals, who was reportedly shot while on duty in Nasarawa State.

The family has since asked for a full scale investigation, saying inconsistent accounts of the incident raise serious doubt about what happened and who should be held responsible.

Legit reports that the family wants the IGP, the National Assembly and human rights bodies to probe the death, while the report also notes conflicting versions about whether the officer died from an attack, a hospital case, or from a gunshot linked to an accidental discharge.

Onoja has used that death to argue that the police should not handle the investigation alone. In both The Guardian and Punch reports, he said the “modest thing” would be for the case to be transferred to the Department of State Services for “impartial review and handling”.

He also maintained that the Mining Marshals’ leadership supported Agada’s family, organised burial arrangements and raised assistance for the widow after the tragedy.

The implication is clear. Onoja believes the police are too close to the conflict to be trusted with a neutral inquiry.

The current dispute has also revived a wider allegation that the police are trying to protect illegal mining interests. In the latest coverage, Onoja rejects a police linked claim that one of his officers was connected to more than ₦2 billion in suspicious transactions, and he argues that the figure does not match the account records.

He also accuses unnamed operatives of blackmail and of using the death of Agada to destroy the reputation of the Mining Marshals and weaken the anti illegal mining campaign.

Guardian reports that he even alleged the real financiers behind the attacks were foreign nationals whose mining site had been shut down.

There is also an important institutional backdrop. This is not the first time the NSCDC and the police have publicly fallen out over illegal mining enforcement in Nasarawa.

In June 2025, the NSCDC petitioned the Senate over alleged police shooting of Mining Marshals and obstruction of prosecutions, before Commandant General Ahmed Audi later ordered the petition withdrawn and said he had spoken to IGP Kayode Egbetokun to calm the situation.

That earlier climb down makes the present confrontation more serious, because it shows the feud was never fully resolved. It was only managed.

The larger issue is illegal mining itself, which the NSCDC has repeatedly described as a national security threat rather than just an economic offence.

In May 2026, Onoja told Punch that illegal mining had become “a major national security threat” and required intelligence driven enforcement, while stressing that the Mining Marshals were created to protect mineral resources and prosecute offenders.

That framing explains why the present fight is so consequential. Whoever controls the narrative around Rafin Gabas and similar sites is also shaping how Nigeria responds to a crime economy with security, political and financial dimensions.

At the time of the latest reports, the police had not publicly answered the allegations in detail, leaving the public to weigh one petition against another and one version of events against several conflicting accounts.

What is certain is that the story now sits at the intersection of illegal mining, alleged police interference, a disputed death inquiry and a deepening crisis of trust between two armed agencies that should be working together.

If the allegations are upheld, the fallout could reach far beyond one officer, one site and one state. It could force a wider reckoning over how Nigeria polices its mineral wealth.