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Mary Habila, a nurse attached to the office of Minister David Umahi, died mysteriously on June 27, 2026, at a private residence linked to the minister. Her body has been in the custody of the Ebonyi State Police Command for weeks, sparking a bitter dispute with her family, who want her remains released for burial. The family's demand came against the backdrop of a legal opinion from the Ebonyi State Ministry of Justice, which raised questions about the circumstances surrounding the nurse's death. The document, obtained by Saturday PUNCH, stated that Habila was healthy before she arrived in Uburu on June 26.
Titled, ‘The DPP’s Legal Advice in Re: Case of Sudden Death and Unnatural Death of Mary Habila with case file no. Cr: 578/2026,” the document supported the police recommendation for a post-mortem examination. According to the DPP, establishing the immediate and remote causes of Habila’s death was essential to the investigation.
The advice stated, “There was no evidence that the deceased was sick or unstable health-wise prior to her sudden death, as she was healthy and active.
The family has continued to oppose an autopsy, citing cultural and personal reasons and insisting that their immediate concern is to recover her remains and perform her burial rites. The disagreement between the family and investigators has now placed the case at a critical point, with the Inspector-General of Police, Tunji Disu, expected to intervene following a formal petition submitted by the family on Friday.
The family, through its lawyer, K.A. Yusuf, on Friday petitioned the IG, accusing the Ebonyi State Police Command of unlawfully withholding Habila’s corpse weeks after her death. The petition, titled, “Complaint Against the Commissioner of Police, Ebonyi State, for the Unlawful Refusal to Release the Corpse of Late Mary Habila for Burial,” was submitted at the Force Headquarters, Abuja.
The family argued that it had fulfilled all requirements demanded by the police and had repeatedly requested the release of the body but was unsuccessful. Yusuf said the continued custody of the remains had caused emotional and psychological distress to the family and prevented them from carrying out traditional and religious burial obligations.
The prolonged withholding of our client’s daughter’s remains has caused our client and his family immense emotional, psychological, financial and cultural hardship. Our client’s family has been denied the opportunity to perform the customary and religious burial rites to which every deceased person is entitled.
Speaking after submitting the petition, Habila’s father, Wisdom, said the family’s position remained unchanged. He said his only request was to take his daughter home and bury her.
“All that I want is the body of my daughter. We don’t keep the body of a little child for this long just like this. That is why I am here to say it once again and for all. I need the corpse of my daughter to take her for burial. That is what I am standing on,” Wisdom said.
Asked why the family was against an autopsy despite the police insisting that it would help unravel the circumstances surrounding her death, the grieving father said they had made their decision.
“I don’t want the autopsy. That is why I am demanding the release of the corpse of my daughter to go and bury her now,” he stated. However, the father clarified that the family was not accusing anyone of causing Habila’s death.
“I am not suspecting anybody because death can occur. Even as we are standing here, one can fall here now and die. It has happened. So, we are not suspecting anybody,” he added.
Habila, a staff member of the David Umahi Federal University of Health Sciences, Uburu, Ebonyi State, was attached to the office of the Minister of Works, David Umahi. She died under mysterious circumstances on June 27, 2026, at a private residence linked to the minister.
The family has been battling for the release of her remains for burial, with the police insisting that a post-mortem examination was necessary to determine the cause of death. The family has, however, rejected the autopsy, citing cultural and personal reasons.
The case has now reached a critical point, with the Inspector-General of Police, Tunji Disu, expected to intervene following a formal petition submitted by the family on Friday. The family has accused the Ebonyi State Police Command of unlawfully withholding Habila’s corpse weeks after her death.