Amnesty International Demands Answers To Mass Removal Of Unidentified Corpses In Imo State
By Sunday Etuka
Rights group, Amnesty International has called on Nigerian authorities to explain how hundreds of unidentified corpses ended up in mortuaries across Imo State, and where they are now being taken, after videos emerged showing bodies being removed under cover of night.
The organization, in a statement on its X handle on Saturday, said it had reviewed disturbing footage documenting the transfer of corpses, many of them reduced to skeletal remains, from facilities including Ngor Okpala General Hospital.
Additional bodies have reportedly been spotted at Mbieri General Hospital, deepening concern over the scale and secrecy of the operation.
Amnesty International says the Imo State government and other relevant bodies owe the public a full accounting: how many bodies are involved, who they were, how they died, when and how they arrived at the mortuaries, and where they are being moved to now.
The group is also demanding that all related records, medical files and physical evidence be preserved so no investigation can later be compromised.
Isa Sanusi, Director of Amnesty International Nigeria, said the authorities have an obligation to trace and identify every body, determine causes of death, and disclose the full timeline of how the remains came to be stored and relocated.
He added that all mortuary and medical records must be safeguarded against tampering.
Sanusi further stated that claims linking some of the dead to unlawful killings carried out during security operations in the state demand a prompt, independent and impartial inquiry.
Amnesty is urging authorities to ensure every body undergoes proper identification and forensic review, including autopsies where warranted, and that grieving families are kept informed rather than left to search for answers on their own.
The group stressed that no remains or evidence tied to the case should be hidden, destroyed or tampered with in any way, and that anyone found responsible for unlawful killings or other rights abuses should face investigation and, where evidence supports it, prosecution through fair legal proceedings.
Sanusi closed by emphasizing that grieving relatives deserve the truth about what happened to their loved ones, and that the government must move swiftly to uncover the facts, protect the evidence, and deliver accountability.
