Mining Marshals Defend 13-Month Shutdown of Stone Rockers Quarry
The Mining Marshals have defended the continued closure of the Stone Rockers Nigeria Limited quarry in Abuja, insisting that the facility remains a crime scene in an ongoing criminal case before the Federal High Court and cannot be reopened pending the determination of the matter.
The clarification followed a recent petition by Stone Rockers to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and other senior government officials over the 13-month closure of its operations. The company had alleged that the shutdown was unlawful and unsupported by any court order.
However, the Commander of the Mining Marshals said the quarry was not sealed as an administrative sanction but because it constitutes the locus criminis—the location where the alleged offence occurred—in a criminal case currently before the court.
According to the Commander, Stone Rockers Nigeria Limited and its director, 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 investigations initiated after a series of petitions by the complainant company spanning more than a year.
The petitions, he explained, were 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 said investigators arrested the defendants at coordinates identified as longitude 7°17’24″E and latitude 8°52’11″N, which the agency found to be within Mining Lease No. 000395 ML held by Lord’s Career Ventures.
He cited a January 23, 2026 letter from the Mining Cadastre Office as confirmation that the disputed coordinates fall 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 authored by a member of the defence team, Mohammed Olanrewaju Jibril.
The Commander claimed that the August 12, 2025 letter, allegedly written on the defendants’ instructions, contained admissions relevant to the allegations before the court.
He maintained that the prosecution’s case was supported by substantial documentary and other evidence extending beyond the disputed coordinates and correspondence.
The agency also criticised attempts by the defendants to seek administrative intervention while related criminal and civil proceedings remain before the courts.
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“The issues raised by the defendants are already the subject of judicial proceedings,” the Commander said, cautioning against actions that could undermine or prejudice the cases.
He further alleged that the defendants were resorting to “every extrajudicial means” to frustrate the criminal proceedings and described the latest petition to the President as part of a broader attempt to influence public opinion.
The Commander also alleged that previous petitions against him to the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) were intended to intimidate or harass him.
He, however, said such pressure would not deter the Mining Marshals from enforcing Nigeria’s mining laws.
“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.
On workers arrested during the initial enforcement operation, the agency said prosecutors had earlier amended the charge to exclude them after determining that they were employees acting for a disclosed principal and might not have possessed the requisite criminal intent.
The Commander, however, disclosed that prosecutors had been directed to review the decision following subsequent developments, including the participation of some of the workers in protests over the continued closure.
He said the affected workers could be relisted as defendants if further evidence establishes a greater degree of involvement in the alleged illegal mining activities.
The Mining Marshals also rejected allegations that the enforcement operation was influenced by financial inducement.
According to the Commander, although Lord’s Career Ventures had complained of financial losses arising from its inability to commence operations because of the alleged encroachment, the company provided neither financial support nor logistics to the Mining Marshals for the operation that led to the arrests.
He said enforcement decisions were based solely on evidence obtained during investigations and were not influenced by the financial standing of either party.
The Commander reaffirmed the agency’s commitment to combating illegal mining and protecting legitimate mineral title holders, stressing that publicity, pressure or alleged blackmail would not deter it from prosecuting suspected violations of the nation’s mining laws.
The dispute between Stone Rockers and Lord’s Career Ventures has generated multiple legal proceedings and competing public narratives. While Stone Rockers maintains that its prolonged closure is unlawful, the Mining Marshals insist that the dispute is now before the courts and should be resolved through the judicial process.
By PRNigeria
