Anxiety is mounting over the fate of Nigerian military officers detained in connection with an alleged coup plot against President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, amid reports that several of them have fallen seriously ill while in custody.
The arrests, which took place in October last year, were first reported by Business Hallmark and linked to an alleged plot to destabilise the Tinubu administration. Former Bayelsa State governor, Timipre Sylva, was also named in connection with the investigation, though he has repeatedly denied any involvement.
Fresh details emerged on Friday following a report by SaharaReporters, which quoted sources as saying that at least five of the detained officers are critically ill, with two reportedly collapsing in detention last week. The officers were initially held at the Defence Intelligence Agency (DIA) but were later transferred to what was described as an underground military detention facility in Abuja.
A military source said some of the officers have remained silent about their condition, while alleging that at least one of those detained was not directly involved in the alleged plot.
“About five of them are critically sick and two collapsed last week. Some of them have refused to speak. One of them wasn’t even involved but is being punished for knowing about it and failing to report,” the source said.
Families of the detained officers have also raised concerns, accusing the military authorities of holding their relatives incommunicado and refusing to disclose their whereabouts.
“We have been denied access to them since their arrest. We don’t even know where they were taken to,” a family member said.
The growing frustration has prompted some of the officers’ wives to plan a protest at the Defence Intelligence Agency headquarters in Abuja.
“We want to protest at the DIA to demand information about our husbands. The office is near the State House Clinic at Mambilla Barracks. About 15 of us want to go there and confirm if they are still alive,” one of the wives said.
She also decried the financial hardship faced by the families, alleging that the officers’ ATM cards were confiscated after their arrest.
“They have been denied access to their families and lawyers. We can’t access their bank accounts. Paying school fees and meeting basic needs has become impossible,” she added.
The investigation into the alleged coup plot is being overseen by the Chief of Defence Intelligence, Lieutenant General Emmanuel Parker Undiandeye, who was reappointed by President Tinubu on October 24, 2025, after first assuming office in June 2023.
Established in 1986, the Defence Intelligence Agency is Nigeria’s primary military intelligence institution, tasked with providing intelligence support to the Armed Forces and the Ministry of Defence in safeguarding national security.
At the time of the arrests, security sources disclosed that at least 16 senior officers from the Nigerian Army, Navy and Air Force were detained following weeks of covert surveillance and coordinated operations by military intelligence operatives.
Those reportedly detained include Brigadier General Musa Abubakar Sadiq, believed to be the leader of the alleged plot; Colonel M.A. Ma’aji; several lieutenant colonels and majors from different formations of the Army; a Nigerian Navy officer, Lieutenant Commander D.B. Abdullahi; and Squadron Leader S.B. Adamu of the Nigerian Air Force.
Leave a Reply