The family of a young lady, who had gone in search of a job in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State, Iniubong Umoren, have requested the corpse of their daughter, who is now confirmed dead.
Umoren, a fresh graduate of the University of Uyo tweeted on Tuesday, seeking a job and had got many replies in that regard.
She had subsequently gone for a job interview in Uyo after having been invited by Ezekiel Frank Akpan who was said to have raped, killed her and buried her in a shallow grave.
Her post read, “#AkwaIbomTwitter please I’m really in need of a job, something to do to keep mind and soul together while contributing dutifully to the organisation. My location is Uyo, I’m creative, really good at thinking critically and most importantly a fast learner. CV available on request.”
The police have confirmed the death of the young lady, adding that her body had been exhumed from the grave and taken to the mortuary for autopsy.
However, the family had called for her corpse regardless as many stated that the consent of the family ought to be got before an autopsy would be conducted.
The family of the young woman, in a live video on Facebook, were seen crying and calling for the release of their relative’s body.
“Where is my sister’s corpse? Bring my sister back to me. Where is she? How are we sure that is her body? We are not leaving this place without seeing her corpse,” her sister was heard saying.
Another was saying, “I want to see her, she is my sister, I reported a case to the police but they refused to address me and instead went to issue a statement on social media.”
In another video, the spokesman for the Akwa Ibom State Police Command, Odiko Macdon, while speaking with journalists at the police station, said the autopsy was necessary to allow for proper investigation.
He, however, said the family has access to the corpse.
He said, “The commissioner of police wishes to express his very deep sympathy on the demise of our friend. What has transpired is not a good one but you can also see the role of the police. We have in custody, the culprit, we have been able to apprehend him but the area we are concerned about is if there is any collaboration; if anybody is an accessory after the fact or an accessory before the fact; our concern is to bring anybody that has any connection with this crime to book.
“We are determined that by the grace of God, we are going to do just that. We urge you to sympathise with the family and then, of course, understand with us, and give us this chance to be able to do what we need to do. Indeed, he assaulted her both sexually and physically and thereafter, after we caught him after he confessed, he was able to take us to the shallow grave where he buried her and we were able to exhume the body. As I speak, the body has been deposited at the hospital. The essence of doing that is so that autopsy can be conducted.
“If you do not conduct an autopsy and charge the matter to court, for any want of diligent prosecution, the matter can be thrown out and we do not want that. We want justice, that is why we want an autopsy to be conducted.
“However, I’ll like to say this, the family will have unhindered access to the corpse to be able to really ascertain whether it’s theirs or not. But, the CP sympathises with the family, friend and loved ones of the deceased on this issue.
“Investigation will be discreet, it will be unhindered. We are deploying everything possible. We will like to determine if there is any form of collaboration. If anyone has aided.”
Akpan, according to reports, is a serial killer and rapist, who had been doing this for years.
Several chats he had with others has surfaced, indicting him as a criminal, since he was identified as the prime suspect.
However, there are allegations that some people with ‘connections’ are trying to truncate the course of justice.
The hashtag, #JusticeforHinyHumoren is currently trending.
It was also alleged that Akpan’s cousin is a politician, who is trying to use his powers to bail the offender and his accomplices.
Meanwhile, a Facebook user, Bobby Bassey stated that Akpan’s confession revealed that the suspect alongside his family members was involved in Umoren’s death.
In a Facebook video, Bassey said, “We are just waiting for someone to come and confirm, let’s just wait and discover the body because what we want now is to discover the body.
“The issue now is we are waiting for the body because it has been confirmed. From the look of things, I think they have more than one body in that place, it’s just for them to go and look for her because they are asking for her full picture.
“The police have been helpful; if not for the help of the police, we wouldn’t have known if she was dead or alive. From the statement, the guy confessed that he actually kidnapped the girl but when he heard that they were looking for him on social media, he handed over the girl to his father. The father now said he handed over the girl to the cousin…”
