A Federal High Court in Owerri has ordered an autopsy on the corpse of a businessman, Noel Chigbu.
Chigbu was allegedly shot dead on April 30, in Owerri, by soldiers for refusing to stop at a checkpoint when he was flagged down.
The presiding judge, Justice Maureen Onyetenu, ordered that a coroner’s inquest be carried out on the corpse which had been at the morgue of Federal Medical Centre in Owerri.
She ordered that all the parties in the suit or their representatives must be present while the autopsy is being carried out on the corpse.
The judge’s order followed a request made by the counsel to the applicant, G. O Anyalewechi, that the court gives an order for the coroner’s inquest to be conducted on the corpse to enable the family bury their son while the matter continues in court.
Counsel to the Chief of Army Staff and the 34 Artillery Brigade Obinze, Major L.B. Berepiki, did not oppose the application.
He however urged the judge for an extension of time to enable the defendants file their counter affidavit.
Noel Chigbu, the spokesperson for the family, informed journalists that his younger brother’s wife was delivered a baby girl. He expressed optimism that with the order, he was relieved that his brother’s remains would be laid to rest.
