Family Discovers Retired Benue Judge’s Decomposing Body
Unknown Gunmen have reportedly killed Justice Margaret Igbetar, a retired President of the Customary Court of Appeal, Makurdi, Benue State.
According to reports, one of her sons discovered the decomposing body on Thursday, August 24, 2023, at her private residence located on No 1, Wantor Kwange Street, opposite the School of Medicine, Benue State University, Gboko Road.
A close family source hinted that her remains had started decomposing by the time the corpse was found, adding that a case of murder has been reported to the “E” Division Police Station, Makurdi.
“Her corpse seems to be decomposing at the time it was found, suggesting she must have been killed before yesterday (Thursday),” the source said.
The Divisional Police Officer, Daniel Ezeala, could not be immediately reached for comments but a police source confirmed the incident.
The source said, “Yes, it’s true. Yesterday, Thursday, August 24, 2023, her lifeless body was discovered in her house but the corpse was not looking too okay; meaning that it (death) couldn’t have happened yesterday (Thursday), maybe it happened the day before yesterday.
“The son is giving useful information that may lead to the arrest of suspects in connection with the incident”, even as insiders hinted that efforts were on by the Benue Police Command to unravel the cause of Justice Igbetar’s death.
On her part, the state Police Public Relations Officer (PRO), Superintendent of Police (SP) Catherine Anene, when contacted claimed to be in transit back to the state. However, Anene, who requested more time to get a detailed briefing on the incident, had not come up with any official statement as of press time.
Born October 17, 1950, in Mbape, Shangev-ya, Tsar-Mbaduku, in the Vandeikya Local Government Area of Benue State, Late Igbetar was married. Her marriage was blessed with seven children; two sons and five daughters.
She was a founding member of the International Federation of Women Lawyers (FIDA), Benue State chapter. Before her sudden demise, the 73-year-old jurist, who retired on October 17, 2015, was living a private life and hardly seen in the public space.
Acclaimed to be the first female lawyer of Benue origin, Justice Igbeta was in 2019 enmeshed in alleged N800 million proxy bank account controversy.
She was dragged before an Abuja High Court by the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) in September 2019 over a proxy bank account she allegedly operated in the name of her housemaid which had a fixed deposit of over N800 million.
In the process, the anti-graft Commission sought an interim injunction for the forfeiture of the said fund reportedly obtained through fraudulent activities in the course of her service in the nation’s judiciary.
