PLATEAU:
RIOT AS FAMILY MEMBERS CLAIM CORPSE IS MUTILATED BY ATTENDANT
There was drama on Thursday morning at the mortuary section of the old site of the Jos University Teaching Hospital, JUTH along Murtala Mohammed Way, Jos as protest broke out over alleged mutilation of a corpse in the mortuary.
Parts of the face of the deceased identified as late Mrs. Angela Nyam were alleged to have been missing while her corpse was deposited at the mortuary and family members discovered the untoward situation when the corpse was to be prepared for funeral service on that day.
Sympathizers who gathered at the mortuary at about 7am to convey the corpse to the Evangelical Church Winning All, ECWA Church, Rusau village for funeral service were thrown into confusion as story of the alleged tampering made some youths to protest against the development.
Mortuary attendants and many sympathisers immediately fled the facility as the protest turned violent and a clergy who tried to calm the rampaging protesters was allegedly injured.
Although the Police managed the situation, the hospital’s official who came to address the situation was almost lynched.
An anonymous attendant, who denied any wrong doing said, the only changes he noticed were that the eyes and lips of the deceased were slightly chopped off by of rodents nibbling at the body.
According to him, “there are other bodies affected by the same rat attack and the hospital management is aware. The fridges of the facility which contain 30 corpses had broken down since 2015.
The facility is also disconnected from electricity supply since last year. Corpses are only embalmed and preserved with chemicals.” A senior staff also speaking anonymously added, “There was an allegation by the family of a deceased person of an attempt by mortuary staff to pluck out an eye of a corpse. That’s not true because both eyes are intact, what happened was that rodents ate slightly, parts of the face but the family thought someone tampered with it. The Police and Pathologists have investigated the matter, there’s no cause for alarm.”
However, the hospital’s Management in a statement issued and signed by Bridget Omini of the Protocol and Public Relations office said, “The attention of the Management of the Jos University Teaching Hospital was drawn to unfounded rumour alleging that a corpse deposited at the old site mortuary was tampered with. This is to clarify that the rumour has no basis as the pathologists and security agencies have confirmed that there was no tampering with the corpse that was embalmed.”
The State Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Mathias Tyopev did not confirm the development as he could not be reached at the time of this report but it was gathered that the crowd which gathered for the funeral service dispersed, while the deceased was given a low key burial on Thursday evening.
@ Vanguard Newspaper
