By Ayo Ayodele
The father of the late Mary Habila has petitioned the Inspector-General of Police (IGP), seeking the transfer of the investigation into his daughter’s death from the Ebonyi State Police Command to the Force Headquarters in Abuja.
In the petition dated July 17, Mr. Habila Wisdom Janko, through his lawyer, K.A. Yusuf, also requested the immediate release of his daughter’s body for burial, alleging that the Ebonyi State Police Command had continued to withhold her remains despite the family’s compliance with all legal requirements.
According to the petition, Mary Habila, a staff member of the David Umahi Federal University of Health Sciences (DUFUHS), Uburu, died on June 27 under circumstances that were reported to the police. Since then, her body has remained in a mortuary on the directive of the Ebonyi State Police Command.
The family argued that the prolonged retention of the body has caused emotional, psychological, financial and cultural hardship, preventing them from carrying out customary and religious burial rites.
The petition described the continued detention of the corpse as arbitrary and unjustified, urging the IGP to intervene in the interest of justice and fairness.
Among the reliefs sought are the transfer of the investigation to the Force Headquarters, the immediate release of Mary Habila’s body for burial, and disciplinary action against any police officers found to have acted unlawfully in the handling of the case.
The petition also requested any additional directives the IGP may consider necessary to ensure a transparent and impartial investigation.
The development adds another twist to the controversy surrounding Mary Habila’s death, which has attracted widespread public attention. While the family insists the body should be released for burial, the police have maintained that investigations are ongoing and that an autopsy is necessary to establish the exact cause of death.