The planned burial of 13 residents killed in a recent attack by suspected armed herders in Turan community, Jato-Aka, in Kwande Local Government Area of Benue State, has been postponed.
The burial ceremony, initially scheduled for Thursday, March 12, 2026, was organised by families of the victims and members of the Turan community.
Preparations had already begun in the Mbachom community as residents gathered to receive the bodies of the deceased from the mortuary.
However, the ceremony could not go ahead after the families were unable to retrieve the corpses.
A local source and relative of one of the victims, Bemgba Numve, said the burial had to be cancelled because the bodies were not released from the mortuary.
“My brother was killed in the attack and we planned to bury all 13 of them today,” he said.
“Everybody is here for the burial and people also came from outside to witness it, but we could not retrieve the bodies of our loved ones from the mortuary.
“We got to the mortuary and discovered that the mortician was not there. We learnt that he had been taken away and there was nobody to release the corpses.”
Numve expressed concern over the situation, insisting that the families had the right to bury their loved ones.
“It is unfortunate that some people do not want us to carry out the burial, but they are our brothers and sisters and we have the right to bury them on our own terms. Whoever took the mortician away will not determine how we will bury them, and we will fix another date,” he added.
Efforts to reach the Police Public Relations Officer of the Benue State Police Command, Udeme Edet, for comments were unsuccessful as of the time of filing this report.