The family of a Nasarawa Polytechnic student, who was allegedly beaten to death by soldiers, has accused the Nigerian Army of confiscating his body, raising suspicions of foul play.
Achinya’s elder brother, Joseph, claimed that the Army took his brother’s corpse after the incident and despite repeated efforts, the family has been unable to recover it.
Joseph explained that their father had travelled from the village to help retrieve the body but all attempts to communicate with the Army have failed.
“We have gone to the school, and even my father came from the village over the issue. We have not seen his corpse because we learned that the Army has taken it away, and all efforts to reach the Army have proved abortive,” Joseph stated.
He further alleged that the soldiers acted on false information provided by an individual who accused his brother of being involved in fraudulent activities, commonly referred to as “Yahoo boy” schemes.
“We learned that a man in the school asked my brother for money, which he said he did not have. The man then told the soldiers stationed outside the school that my brother was a ‘Yahoo boy.’
“They immediately arrested him and another student, beat them, and my brother lost his life,”
he said.
Joseph denied any involvement of his brother in illegal activities, saying, “My brother was not a Yahoo boy or cultist. My father sends us money from the village, and we also do small jobs to survive. They killed my brother for no reason.”
The death of Terhile Achinya has sparked outrage within the polytechnic community.
The Acting Rector of the institution, Dr Nurudeen Mu’azu Maifata, has urged for calm while the investigation continues.
Daily Post had reported that the Students Union Government (SUG) President, Jacob John Mutuwa, confirmed that the soldiers had arrested several students based on allegations of cultism, including Achinya, at a popular entertainment centre near the school.
The Nigerian Army has yet to release an official statement on the matter.
When contacted, the Army spokesperson, Major General Onyema Nwachukwu acknowledged the request for comments but had not responded by the time of filing this report.
