The Commissioner for Energy and Mineral Resources in Ondo State, Rasak Obe, has lauded the troops of the Nigerian Army for their prompt and decisive response against illegal miners in the state.
While parading the suspects in Akure, the Ondo State capital, the commissioner called for the support of all stakeholders, stressing that the menace of illegal mining needs to be permanently addressed, as it has the potential to worsen insecurity in both the state and the country at large.
On September 3, 2024, troops of the Thirty-Two Artillery Brigade of the Nigerian Army arrested twenty-six suspected illegal miners operating in Ondo State.
The operation followed credible intelligence on their activities at suspected illegal mining sites in the Ondo West Local Government Area of the state.
The suspected illegal miners were handed over to the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), Ondo State Command, for further investigation and prosecution.
Items found in their possession included seven mobile phones, twenty-one head pans, four cutlasses, twelve shovels, twelve painter buckets, foot carpets, and a sack containing clothes—all of which were handed over to the NSCDC.
The clampdown on illegal miners affirms the troops’ commitment to protecting Nigeria’s critical infrastructure and ridding the Brigade’s Area of Responsibility (AOR) of all forms of criminal activities and economic sabotage.
The Brigade appreciated the good people of Ondo State for their continued support, particularly in the area of information sharing, to help rid the state of all forms of criminality.
