Cemetery Manager Arrested Over Alleged Corpse Exhumation and Casket Theft in Akwa Ibom

(The Recovered Motorcycle And Recovered Coffin Photo Credit: Punch News)

The Akwa Ibom State Police Command has nabbed one Nsikak Effiong and the manager of Mbiokporo Cemetery, Elijah Edet, for allegedly conspiring to exhume a freshly buried corpse with the intention of selling the casket for financial benefit.

Timfon John, the command's Public Relations officer, stated this in a statement to journalists in Uyo, the state capital, on Thursday.

She stated that the event occurred on August 3, 2026, at approximately 11:30 p.m. in Nsit-Ibom, following a distress call from a vigilante operative who reported unusual activity in the cemetery, adding that he saw two guys transporting a casket on an unregistered motorcycle.

According to the command spokesperson, the vigilante confronted the suspects.

Effiong Asuquo, one of the accused, fled the scene in an attempt to avoid being arrested, but Effiong, his accomplice, was caught and turned over to the police.

Effiong admitted under questioning that he and his accomplice had illegally dug up a recently buried body, taken the body out of the coffin, and taken the coffin with the goal of selling it for cash.

The police have discovered the unregistered motorcycle and the empty casket, according to the PPRO, who also stated that investigations have begun to determine the circumstances surrounding the crime and identify everyone involved.

She revealed that additional investigation resulted in the cemetery manager's arrest on August 5, 2026, at approximately 5:00 p.m., and that during questioning, the suspect acknowledged that it was his first time engaging in such criminal activity and that he had conspired with the grave diggers to commit the crime.

The investigation into the illegal exhumation of a freshly buried corpse and the theft of a casket at Mbiokporo Cemetery in Uyo has made significant progress, according to the Akwa Ibom State Police Command.

Two suspects, including the cemetery manager, have been arrested, and efforts have been stepped up to capture another accomplice who is still at large.

The incident was discovered on August 3, 2026, at approximately 11:30 p.m., after a watchful member of the public reported suspicious activity at the cemetery after seeing two guys moving a coffin in the dark on an unregistered motorcycle.

Based on the suspicion, the complainant addressed the suspects to find out why the coffin had been moved at such an odd hour.

One of the suspects, Effiong Asuquo, fled the scene in an attempt to avoid being arrested, but his accomplice, Nsikak Effiong, was caught and turned over to the police right away.

Nsikak Effiong admitted during questioning that he and his accomplice had illegally dug up a recently buried body, taken the body out of the coffin, and taken the coffin with the goal of selling it for cash.

"The unregistered motorcycle used to transport the stolen goods and the empty coffin were discovered by the police, and investigations were promptly broadened to determine the complete facts surrounding the crime and identify all those associated with it.

Elijah Matthew Edet, the manager of Mbiokporo Cemetery, was arrested on August 5, 2026, at around 5:00 p.m., following additional inquiry.

The suspect acknowledged during questioning that he had conspired with the grave diggers to commit the crime and that it was his first time engaging in such illegal behavior, according to the statement.

According to the PPRO, Baba Azare, the state commissioner of police, denounced the incident as savage, sacrilegious, and a flagrant breach of the deceased's dignity.

In order to guarantee that every person involved in the crime is located, detained, and prosecuted in compliance with the law, he further ordered that the investigation be thorough, intelligence-driven, and properly carried out.

The vigilante officer's alertness, bravery, and sense of civic duty were also praised by the CP.

The suspects' attempt to flee with the stolen casket was thwarted by the vigilante officer's timely action and report.

The police boss urged residents to remain security conscious and continue to provide timely, credible information to the police.