Drama in Edo as Police Detain Mortician Over Alleged Organ Harvesting

The Edo State Police Command has detained a mortician for allegedly harvesting organs from a corpse deposited at Aigbe Mortuary on Akugbe Street in Ikpoba-Okha Local Government Area of the state.

The arrest followed a distress call after a family raised an alarm that some internal organs were missing from the body of their late father. The incident reportedly led to the vandalisation of the mortuary by an angry crowd.

According to family sources, the body had already been taken from the mortuary for burial when the discovery was made during a lying-in-state. They said a foul smell was noticed coming from the body, prompting relatives to spray perfume. It was during this process that they allegedly discovered the internal organs had been removed and replaced with cellophane.

The family immediately returned the body to the mortuary to demand an explanation. This development reportedly triggered unrest, as other families with corpses at the facility hurriedly moved them to different mortuaries over safety concerns.

A viral video circulating on social media showed an opening in the chest area of the corpse, with several pieces of cellophane removed from inside the body.

Confirming the incident, the Edo State Police Command spokesperson, Eno Ikoedem, said the mortician was taken into custody after the police received a distress call. He added that an investigation into the allegation is ongoing.