EFCC Vows to Target Sponsors of Illegal Mining

According to a report by Punch Newspaper on Tuesday November 3, 2026, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission has vowed to intensify its crackdown on illegal mining, saying it will target financiers, mineral buyers, compromised public officials and others who support criminal networks exploiting Nigeria’s mineral resources.

EFCC Chairman Ola Olukoyede said illegal mining was sustained by sophisticated syndicates involving local and international players.

He warned that arresting miners at excavation sites alone would not tackle the problem.

Olukoyede spoke on Tuesday while delivering a keynote address at a public lecture and capacity-building workshop in Ilorin, Kwara State.

The event was organized by the Michael Imoudu National Institute for Labour Studies and the Human and Environmental Development Agenda.

He said the networks behind illegal mining extended beyond those carrying out excavation, involving people who provided funding, transported minerals, facilitated documentation and bought illegally extracted resources.

The EFCC chairman said the commission would pursue those who enabled and profited from the operations, including officials accused of providing protection.

He described the trade as an organized criminal enterprise that relied on multiple actors to move minerals from mining sites into local and international markets.

Arresting miners at excavation sites alone will not address the problem, Olukoyede said, stressing the need to investigate the broader networks behind the activity.

The commission’s approach, he said, would focus on identifying the financial and logistical support systems that allow illegal mining to continue.

Tracking money flows and holding sponsors accountable would be central to efforts to disrupt the syndicates, rather than concentrating only on workers found at mining locations.

Illegal mining has raised concerns over the loss of public revenue and the unauthorized exploitation of mineral deposits.

The activity can also damage land and water resources, while weakening regulatory oversight and creating opportunities for corruption.

Olukoyede said the involvement of financiers, buyers and facilitators made cooperation among relevant agencies and institutions important.

Investigations, he indicated, must follow the chain of activity from the extraction of minerals through their transportation, sale and eventual proceeds.

The EFCC’s pledge adds to broader efforts to curb economic crimes linked to the exploitation of natural resources.

By targeting those who finance, protect and trade in illegally mined minerals, the commission said it intends to strike at the structures that make the business profitable.

The chairman’s remarks did not identify specific suspects or announce arrests connected to the pledge.

He also did not provide a timeline or details of particular operations, but said the commission would intensify its efforts against the networks involved.

The workshop brought together participants for discussion and capacity-building on issues affecting labour and development.

Olukoyede used the address to underline the scale and complexity of illegal mining, arguing that enforcement must extend beyond the sites where minerals are extracted.

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