‘Tell police to release my husband’s corpse,’ woman begs Anambra panel

A widow, Mrs. Chidimma Edozieuno, on Thursday, urged the Anambra State Judicial Panel of Inquiry to ask the Nigeria Police Force to release the corpse of her husband, Johnson, to his family for burial.

Edozieuno, who made the call in her petition to the panel sitting in Awka, the state capital, alleged that the deceased died in police custody.

She said her husband, who lived in the Benin Republic, visited Nigeria after she was delivered of the couple’s child, was arrested in the early hours of August 1, 2017, by policemen on mufti at their Ichida Street residence in Awka.

The woman added that her property was taken away to an unknown destination by the policemen whose operational base was not disclosed to the family.

According to her, the police operatives alleged that her husband was a kidnapper who would not be seen again.

Edozieuno said: “After we searched the police stations around Awka without success, information got to us that my husband was being tortured and detained by the disbanded Special Anti Robbery Squad (SARS) at Awkuzu.

READ ALSO: Obiano assures #EndSARS protesters of release of all ‘illegal’ detainees in SARS cells in the state

“We instituted a legal process at the state High Court, Awka, to secure his release.

“During one of the proceedings, the legal department of SARS informed the court that my husband had died.

“That was how the matter was dismissed by the court.”

She pleaded with the panel to order the police to release the husband’s corpse to his family.

The woman also urged the panel to order the police to return her property and pay reasonable compensation to the deceased’s family.

The Chairman of the panel, Justice Veronica Umeh, said the panel would investigate the claims in the petition and make appropriate recommendations.

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