The Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) Mining Marshals have explained why the Stone Rockers quarry in Abuja has remained closed for 13 months, saying the facility cannot be reopened while it remains central to an ongoing criminal case before the Federal High Court.
Assistant Commandant of Corps John Onoja, Commander of the NSCDC Mining Marshals, said the continued sealing of the quarry was not an administrative punishment against Stone Rockers Nigeria Limited but a measure linked directly to the criminal proceedings arising from alleged illegal mining activities at the site.
Onoja gave the explanation in a statement issued in Abuja on Sunday, following renewed controversy over the prolonged closure of the quarry. Stone Rockers had recently petitioned President Bola Tinubu and other senior government officials, alleging that the shutdown of its operations for more than a year was unlawful and had not been supported by a court order.
The Mining Marshals, however, rejected that position, maintaining that the quarry is the location connected to an alleged criminal offence and therefore remains relevant to the judicial proceedings. Onoja said the agency was acting within the context of an investigation and prosecution rather than imposing a regulatory sanction on the company.
“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.
According to the commander, Stone Rockers Nigeria Limited and one of its directors, Kolawole Olaiya, are defendants in Charge No. FHC/ABM/VR/338/2026. The charge concerns allegations of illegal mining activities allegedly carried out within a mineral title area belonging to Lord’s Career Ventures Nigeria Limited.
Onoja said the case originated from a series of petitions submitted by the complainant company over a period exceeding one year. The petitions, he explained, were subsequently referred to the Mining Marshals through the Commandant-General of the NSCDC after being directed by the Minister of Solid Minerals Development and the Minister of Interior.
The referrals led to an investigation by the Mining Marshals into the competing claims over the mining area. As part of the investigation, Onoja said, operatives arrested the defendants at specific coordinates which the agency determined were located within a mining lease held by Lord’s Career Ventures.
He identified the coordinates as longitude 7°17’24″E and latitude 8°52’11″N, saying the Mining Marshals’ findings placed the location within Mining Lease No. 000395 ML, which the agency said belongs to Lord’s Career Ventures Nigeria Limited.
The commander said the agency relied, among other materials, on correspondence from the Mining Cadastre Office to support its position regarding the disputed mining location. He specifically referred to a letter dated January 23, 2026, which he said confirmed that the coordinates identified during the investigation fell within the licensed mining area of the complainant.
Onoja also disclosed that documentary material gathered during the investigation would form part of the evidence to be presented before the court. Among the documents he mentioned was a letter allegedly written during the investigation by Mohammed Olanrewaju Jibril, described as a member of the defence team.
According to the commander, the letter was dated August 12, 2025 and was allegedly written on the instructions of the defendants. He said the contents contained what the investigators regarded as admissions relevant to the allegations contained in the criminal case.
The Mining Marshals commander stressed that the prosecution was not dependent on the disputed coordinates or the correspondence alone. He described the documentary evidence gathered during the investigation as substantial and said the agency remained prepared to present its case through the appropriate judicial process.
His comments came amid calls by Stone Rockers for government intervention over the length of time its quarry operations have remained suspended. The company had alleged that the closure was unlawful and not supported by a court order, prompting the latest public dispute over the status of the facility.
Onoja, however, argued that the issues raised by the company and the defendants were already before the courts and should therefore be resolved through judicial proceedings rather than administrative or public pressure.
“The issues raised by the defendants are already the subject of judicial proceedings,” he said, warning against actions that could undermine or prejudice the cases.
He further accused the defendants of resorting to what he described as “every extrajudicial means” in an attempt to frustrate the criminal proceedings. According to him, the latest petition to the President was part of efforts to obtain intervention outside the judicial process despite the existence of criminal and civil proceedings connected to the dispute.
Onoja also linked what he described as attempts to influence public opinion to earlier petitions against him before the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission. He characterised those efforts as unsuccessful attempts to harass him and maintained that neither public campaigns nor institutional pressure would stop the Mining Marshals from pursuing the case.
The commander issued a strong warning to individuals and companies operating in the mining sector, saying the agency would continue to enforce Nigeria’s mining laws regardless of the level of opposition or criticism directed at its activities.
“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.
Onoja also called on media organisations to exercise greater caution when reporting disputes involving mining operations and enforcement agencies. He urged news organisations to strengthen their editorial verification processes so that allegations lacking adequate evidence would not gain public traction.
He said the media had an important role to play in supporting the Federal Government’s efforts to reform Nigeria’s solid minerals sector, particularly by promoting lawful mining practices and responsible conduct among operators.
The commander also addressed the position of workers who were initially arrested during the enforcement operation at the quarry. He explained that prosecutors had previously amended the charge to remove the workers from the proceedings after determining that they were employees of a disclosed principal and might not have possessed the criminal intent necessary to sustain prosecution against them.
However, Onoja said that position was now being reconsidered following subsequent developments involving some of the workers. He pointed specifically to their participation in protests connected with the prolonged closure of the quarry.
According to him, prosecutors have been directed to examine whether the workers’ subsequent conduct and other available evidence justify their return to the criminal proceedings. He said the affected workers could be relisted if the evidence established that they had a greater degree of involvement in the alleged illegal mining activities than was initially determined.
The Mining Marshals also rejected allegations that financial inducement influenced the enforcement operation or the decision to seal the quarry. Onoja said Lord’s Career Ventures had complained repeatedly about financial losses allegedly arising from its inability to commence operations because of the disputed encroachment.
He maintained, however, that the complainant company did not provide financial support or logistics to the Mining Marshals for the operation that resulted in the arrests. According to the commander, the agency’s actions were based on the findings and evidence obtained during its investigation.
Onoja therefore insisted that the enforcement process was not determined by the financial position of either Stone Rockers or Lord’s Career Ventures. He said the Mining Marshals acted on the evidence available to investigators and would continue to allow the court to determine the criminal allegations before it.
The dispute has consequently placed the prolonged closure of the Abuja quarry within the wider legal proceedings between the parties. While Stone Rockers has challenged the continued shutdown and sought intervention from senior government officials, the Mining Marshals maintain that reopening the site before the criminal proceedings are determined could interfere with a location they regard as material to the case.
For now, Onoja said the agency would remain focused on its statutory responsibility to combat illegal mining and protect legitimate holders of mineral titles. He maintained that pressure arising from the dispute, media attention or allegations of blackmail would not alter the Mining Marshals’ position on enforcement.
The NSCDC commander reaffirmed that the agency would continue pursuing alleged breaches of Nigeria’s mining laws while the courts determine the legal issues arising from the Stone Rockers quarry dispute.
NSCDC: Abuja quarry remains sealed as criminal case over alleged illegal mining continues
