It was a shock find in Oguta, Imo State, yesterday. The embalmed body of a 78-year-old grandmother, who was declared missing 10 years ago, was discovered inside her son’s home.
The sleepy Ejemekwuru community in Oguta Local Government Area of Imo State has been thrown into turmoil over the strange discovery in the home of Dr. Chimezie Osigweh, a retired school principal.
The police threw open the wardrobe to reveal the body of Madam Lucy Osigweh. The lid was blown off the scandal by a 22-year-old boy who was searching for his credentials in his father’s closet.
As he opened a wardrobe, he was confronted with the grim sight – the stiff and embalmed body – of his grandmother, who was thought to have been missing.
He tipped off the police, who arrested his dad after confirming the claim.
Imo State Police Commissioner Musa Katsina said Madam Osigweh was declared missing in 2003.
Katsina, speaking at the house in Ejemekuru, said the embalmed body had been kept in that condition since 2003.
“The corpse of Mrs Lucy Osigweh, who was declared missing in 2003, was found in a large cupboard inside a shrine in a private room in a circumstance depicting ritual practice.
“The embalmed body, which was kept in that condition for about 10 years is believed to have been placed in the wardrobe by her son, Dr Chimezie Osigweh, a devotee of the Guru Maharaji sect.
“Preliminary assessment of the scene of crime revealed that the woman must have been murdered by the son for ritual purposes,” he said.
The commissioner said the police were on the trail of other members of the sect who visited Osigweh’s shrine.
He said the body would be handed over to the forensic team of the command to determine the cause of death.
Katsina also said the suspect would be held for first degree murder until the cause of death is established.
The retired teacher confessed that the body of his late mother was embalmed by an employee of one of the General Hospitals in the state who had died.
Narrating how his mother died, Osigweh said: “That evening, sometime in 2003, I was meditating in my temple when my mother came in to ease herself. Suddenly, I heard a big noise. I went in and found her groaning, I took her to her room and laid her on the bed before she passed on.
“But you see, she is still here but I can’t tell you why she is here 10 years, after, because the enemies of Guru Maharaji are all over here, I will talk to you people in camera.”
The leader of the Guru Maharaji sect could not be reached last night.
The suspect, who fielded questions in impeccable English, said he had been a member of the sect for 24 years and had attained high spiritual level to the extent that he could travel to see God at will.
The police chief said the bizarre scene was uncovered by the Ambush Squad attached to the Command after a tip-off.
He said the house serves as a meeting point for ritualists who, according to him, converge to perpetrate atrocities.
“We have information about the large number of devotees that patronise the shrine, which will help us identify those behind the heinous act,” Katsina added.
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