Some of the survivors who were detained in the same facility with the 37 suspected illegal miners who did in custody have recounted their experience. On Thursday,  September 17, thirty-seven suspected illegal miners who were arrested by operatives of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) were found dead in their cell, with many f them foaming from the mouth (read here). They had been arrested between September 15 and September 16 and had only spent some hours in the cell before they were found de@d. In an interview with Zarar Bunu TV, some of the survivors narrated how the deceased gasped for air and banged on the door of their cell as they did slowly. Those who still had a vestige of life began crying out and banging hard on the door, but NSCDC personnel on duty remained unresponsive, Dauda Shehu, one of the suspects told Zarar Bunu TV. Shehu added: We exhausted every means to stay alive, including drinking our urine and calling for help, but no one came to our aid. The inmates on the left and right began falling one after another. Shehu said trouble began when community leaders in Lokoto, a small village and residential settlement located in the Bosso Local Government Area (LGA) of Niger State, demanded N150,000 for each mining pit. However, many of the young “illegal” miners were unable to pay the amount. Shehu said: We met with them at the palace. They demanded N150k for each mining pit, but we complained that diamonds were not abundant in the area, and, therefore, we could not raise the amount. A few of us paid, while some promised to pay. Sixty-six of us were put in one cell. Six people are currently on admission. They did not torture us, but there was excessive heat. We complained that the cell was too small to accommodate all of us, but they did not listen to us. We watched our colleagues di, and even when we raised the alarm, they thought we were lying. We drank urine because we couldnt access water due to heat. Some people did in the night while others did in the morning on Thursday, he said. Another survivor said they were drenched in sweat as they struggled to survive in the overcrowded cell. We shared, in turns, a small window for ventilation. Many of my friends and relatives have fallen, he said. The de@th of the miners some of them still teenagers has angered Nigerians and prompted demand for answers. Watch the survivor narrating the incident in Hausa here.The post Survivor narrates final moments of detained illegal miners who begged for their lives and did after refusing to pay bribe (video) appeared first on Linda Ikeji Blog.