The Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps Mining Marshals have defended the continued closure of the Stone Rockers quarry site in Abuja, insisting the facility remains a crime scene in an ongoing criminal prosecution and cannot reopen until the Federal High Court determines the case.
The Commander of the NSCDC Mining Marshals, Assistant Commandant of Corps John Onoja, stated this in a statement issued in Abuja on Sunday.
The clarification came days after Stone Rockers Nigeria Limited petitioned President Bola Tinubu and other key government officials over the 13-month shutdown of its operations, alleging that the continued closure was unlawful and not backed by any court order.
The company’s allegations have attracted widespread media attention in recent days, with the firm seeking government intervention over the prolonged shutdown of the quarry. But responding to the claims, Onoja maintained that the sealing of the facility was connected to an ongoing criminal case and was not an administrative measure imposed on the company.
He said, “The quarry was sealed not as an administrative sanction but because it constitutes the locus criminis in a criminal matter currently before the court.”
Onoja said Stone Rockers and one of its directors, Mr Kolawole Olaiya, are standing trial in Charge No. FHC/ABM/VR/338/2026 over allegations of illegal mining activities within a mineral title area legally belonging to Lord’s Career Ventures Nigeria Limited.
He explained that the prosecution followed investigations initiated after the complainant company submitted a series of petitions over a period of more than one year.
According to the commander, the petitions 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 for investigation and prosecution.
Onoja said investigators arrested the defendants at coordinates identified during the investigation as falling within a mining lease held by Lord’s Career Ventures Nigeria Limited.
“Investigators arrested the defendants at coordinates identified as longitude 7°17’24″E and latitude 8°52’11″N, which, according to findings by the Mining Marshals, fall within Mining Lease No. 000395 ML belonging to Lord’s Career Ventures Nigeria Limited.
“To support the claim, the agency cited a letter dated January 23, 2026 from the Mining Cadastre Office, which reportedly confirmed that the disputed coordinates are located within the complainant’s licensed mining area,” he explained.
The Mining Marshals commander further said part of the evidence expected to be tendered before the court included correspondence allegedly written by a member of the defence team, Mohammed Olanrewaju Jibril, during the investigation.
According to Onoja, the letter, dated August 12, 2025, and allegedly written on the instructions of the defendants, contained admissions considered relevant to the allegations now before the court.
He maintained that the prosecution’s case was not limited to the disputed coordinates and correspondence, describing the documentary evidence assembled during the investigation as substantial. The commander also faulted what the agency described as attempts by the defendants to seek administrative intervention despite the existence of criminal and civil proceedings arising from the dispute.
“The issues raised by the defendants are already the subject of judicial proceedings,” the commander said, warning against actions capable of undermining or prejudicing the ongoing cases.
Onoja 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.
According to him, the petition was part of a broader effort to influence public opinion following what he described as unsuccessful attempts to harass him through petitions to the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission.
The commander said neither public campaigns nor institutional pressure would deter the Mining Marshals from pursuing the criminal 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.
He appealed to media organisations to strengthen their editorial gatekeeping processes to ensure that reports lacking sufficient merit or verification do not gain traction in the public domain.
According to him, the media remained a critical stakeholder in the Federal Government’s efforts to reform the solid minerals sector and had an important role to play in promoting lawful and responsible mining practices.
On the status of workers initially arrested during enforcement operations, Onoja said prosecutors had earlier amended the charge to exclude them on the grounds that they acted as employees of a disclosed principal and might not possess the criminal intent required for prosecution.
However, he said recent developments, including the participation of some of the workers in protests over the shutdown, had prompted a review of that decision.
The commander disclosed that prosecutors had been directed to consider relisting the affected workers in the criminal proceedings if evidence established a greater level of involvement in the alleged illegal mining activities.
The Mining Marshals also dismissed allegations that the enforcement operation was influenced by financial inducement.
According to the agency, Lord’s Career Ventures had repeatedly complained about financial losses arising from its inability to commence operations because of the alleged encroachment but did not provide financial support or logistics to the Mining Marshals for the operation that resulted in the arrests.
Onoja maintained that the enforcement decisions were based solely on evidence obtained during investigations and not on the financial standing of either party.
He reaffirmed the agency’s commitment to tackling illegal mining and protecting legitimate mineral title holders, insisting that no amount of pressure, publicity or alleged blackmail would deter the Mining Marshals from pursuing alleged violators of Nigeria’s mining laws.
Illegal mining has remained a major concern for the Federal Government as it seeks to reposition the solid minerals sector as a major contributor to economic growth and diversify government revenue away from crude oil.
