- Safiu Kehinde
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has arrested 10 suspected illegal miners in Kwara State with truckloads of solid minerals recovered from them.
This was disclosed in a statement issued on the commission’s official X handle on Monday.
According to the statement, the suspects were arrested on Sunday along the Ilorin – Ogbomosho axis by operatives attached to the EFCC’s Ilorin Zonal Directorate.
The suspects, comprising nine truck drivers and one escort, were intercepted and taken into custody following credible intelligence on unlawful mineral excavation and transportation in parts of Kwara and Oyo States.
Some of the solid minerals recovered from the suspects include lithium, tin, and lepidolite.
Other items recovered from the suspects are trucks loaded with the unlawfully mined materials.
According to the EFCC, the suspects have no requisite licences, permits, or regulatory approvals for their mining activities.
The commission vowed to charge them to court upon the conclusion of investigations.