EXCLUSIVE: Alleged Coup: Defence Intelligence Agency Holds 16 Military Officers In Secret Location For Weeks As Families Express Worries

At least 16 Nigerian military officers are currently being detained incommunicado by the Defence Intelligence Agency (DIA) in connection with an alleged coup plot that the Bola Tinubu-led government and the military authorities claim they are investigating, SaharaReporters has learnt.

Multiple military sources and family members confirmed to SaharaReporters on Wednesday that the detained officers have been held for over three weeks in an undisclosed location in Abuja under what they describe as “unusual and suspicious conditions.”

One of the families told SaharaReporters that they initially believed their relative had been kidnapped, as there was no official notice from the military about his arrest or whereabouts.

“It’s been 18 days since those 16 officers were detained in an undisclosed location. At first, we thought our brother was kidnapped before finding out what transpired from his friend who works in the NSA office,” a worried family member told SaharaReporters.

“No official explanation from the military till date. None of the families has been allowed to visit or even call them. Everyone is scared about their present condition.”

The Defence Intelligence Agency, which operates directly under the Ministry of Defence, is typically responsible for intelligence gathering and counter-espionage — not for trying military officers accused of offences. 

The agency’s decision to detain the officers, instead of referring them to their respective service authorities, has raised questions about legality and due process.

A security expert who served in the military for nine years told SaharaReporters that the DIA was overstepping its mandate.

“In the military, if an army officer offends, he is to be charged by the Nigerian Army directly wherever his or her unit is, because the dossier is with the Army. The same applies to the Navy and Air Force,” he said.

“We want to know when the DIA started handling cases of indiscipline. When did it become a military court?”

He added that if the military were truly conducting a disciplinary sweep for the officers as claimed, “over 10,000 cases” of alleged misconduct could easily surface. He noted that their suspicion is that the current detention of the officers is "politically motivated."

“Why only 16 officers? Why pick from all three services and then hand them over to the DIA? This doesn’t follow standard military procedure,” he added. 

The expert also criticised the poor handling of public communication by the Director of Defence Information (DDI), Brigadier General Tukur Gusau, describing his recent interactions with newsmen as “evasive and unconvincing.”

“I just realised that the press men who interviewed the DDI lacked professionalism in their questions. Only two questions about why the officers are with the DIA and why are they being denied access to family members would have been good for Brigadier General Gusau,” he said. 

The reports of the alleged coup were exclusively released by SaharaReporters on Saturday. 

SaharaReporters gathered that the coup plotters are attached to the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA).

ONSA is led by Nuhu Ribadu, a lawyer and retired police officer serving as National Security Adviser to President Tinubu.

Although the military had earlier claimed in an official statement that the officers were being held due to “repeated failure in promotion examinations and perceived career stagnation,” credible sources told SaharaReporters that the arrests were, in fact, linked to a suspected coup plot.