By Mardiyyah Abubakar
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has vowed to intensify its crackdown on illegal mining by targeting financiers, mineral buyers, compromised public officials and other individuals benefiting from the theft of Nigeria’s mineral resources.
EFCC Chairman, Ola Olukoyede, said illegal mining was sustained by sophisticated criminal networks involving local and international players, warning that arresting miners at excavation sites alone would not solve the problem.
Olukoyede spoke on Tuesday while delivering a keynote address at a public lecture and capacity-building workshop organised by the Michael Imoudu National Institute for Labour Studies and the Human and Environmental Development Agenda in Ilorin, Kwara State.
He explained that the criminal networks included financiers, transporters, buyers of illegally extracted minerals and public officials who facilitated the operations.
The EFCC chairman said the commission’s enforcement strategy would focus on dismantling these networks by tracing proceeds of illegal mining and identifying those who financed and benefited from the activities.
He disclosed that the commission recorded 52 illegal mining cases between October 2023 and July 2026 and secured the forfeiture of 102 tonnes of solid minerals.
Olukoyede clarified that the EFCC was not the regulatory authority for the mining sector and was not responsible for issuing mining licences.
He said the commission’s intervention focused on suspected corruption, fraud, money laundering, illicit financial flows and proceeds of criminal activities.
He also linked illegal mining to Nigeria’s security challenges, warning that unregulated mineral extraction and trading provided opportunities for extortion, smuggling, violence and territorial disputes.
The EFCC chairman warned that public officials who abused their positions to facilitate illegal mining, manipulate licences or launder proceeds from mineral theft would face investigation and prosecution.
He called for stronger cooperation among mining regulators, financial intelligence institutions, law enforcement agencies, customs authorities and revenue agencies to improve intelligence sharing and coordinated investigations.
Olukoyede also urged traditional institutions, community associations, youth groups and civil society organisations to report suspicious mining activities.
He reaffirmed the commission’s commitment to investigating financiers and facilitators, recovering criminal assets and prosecuting suspects based on evidence.
He stressed that Nigeria’s mineral wealth should benefit its citizens rather than criminal networks.
