By Godswill Michael
The father of late physiotherapist, Mary Habila, has formally withdrawn the case surrounding his daughter’s death, rejected a proposed autopsy and requested that the police discontinue further investigation, according to an affidavit filed before the High Court of Justice in Ebonyi State.
In the affidavit, titled “Affidavit of Withdrawal of Case” and seen by Pointblank News on Thursday, Tanko Habila Wisdom said his family would not permit an autopsy on the 26-year-old’s body despite ongoing efforts to establish the cause of her death.
“While I welcome steps being taken to unravel the cause of my daughter’s death, my family and I will not accept any autopsy on my daughter’s body,” the affidavit stated.
The deponent also asked investigators to discontinue the matter and release his daughter’s remains to the family for burial.
“I also wish not to proceed further with the investigation and further request to have my daughter’s body released to me for burial.”
He further indicated that neither he nor his family intended to participate in any further investigative or judicial proceedings.
“I will not honour subsequent invitation either to the Police or Court in respect of this case as my family is not suspecting any foul play.”
The affidavit identified Tanko Habila Wisdom as the deceased’s father and stated that Mary Habila died on June 27, 2026, in Uburu, Ohaozara Local Government Area of Ebonyi State.
It also disclosed that before her death, Habila was employed by the David Umahi Federal University of Medical Sciences and had been seconded to the Federal Ministry of Works, Mabushi, Abuja, where she worked in the Office of the Minister of Works for about three years.
According to the affidavit, she also served as the minister’s personal nurse and resided at the minister’s official guest house in Abuja as well as the minister’s staff quarters in Ebonyi State.
The document acknowledged that the Minister of Works, David Umahi, had requested a comprehensive autopsy to determine the cause of Habila’s death. However, it stated that the family opposed the procedure because it wanted her body and organs to remain intact before burial.
Meanwhile, a legal advice issued by the Ebonyi State Directorate of Public Prosecutions (DPP), dated July 15, 2026, and addressed to the Deputy Commissioner of Police, Criminal Investigation Department, Ebonyi State Police Command, revealed preliminary findings from the review of witness statements in the case file.
According to the document, “the evidence available shows that the deceased was alone at the time she was found dead in her apartment.”
It further observed that “she laid lifeless on the floor of her apartment naked with blood stain on her nose and mouth.”
The DPP also noted that “there was no evidence that the deceased was indisposed, sick or unstable health wise prior to her sudden death, as she was full of life at the time she returned to Uburu in company of her team.”
The portion of the legal advice available to Pointblank News did not contain the DPP’s final recommendation but outlined observations made after examining witness statements and other materials contained in the investigation file.
The latest development comes after Habila’s family was unable to retrieve her body from the mortuary, forcing the postponement of her burial, which had been scheduled for Friday in Kaduna State.
Sources familiar with the development told Pointblank News that members of the family, accompanied by their lawyer, travelled to Ebonyi State to complete the formalities required for the release of the body but returned without the remains after authorities declined to release them.
“The family has gone back without the body. Their lawyer was with them throughout the process, but they could not secure its release. That means the funeral earlier fixed for Friday can no longer hold,” a source said.
Although authorities have not officially explained why the body was withheld, sources said investigators were yet to conclude critical aspects of the ongoing probe.
The development follows an earlier directive by the Minister of Works, David Umahi, requesting that a comprehensive autopsy be conducted to establish the actual cause of Habila’s death.
In a separate letter exclusively obtained by Pointblank News, solicitors to the minister, Roy D.U. Nwaeze & Co., urged the Commissioner of Police in Ebonyi State not to release Habila’s body until an autopsy had been carried out.
The letter also clarified that Habila lived in the minister’s staff quarters alongside another occupant and not inside the minister’s private residence.
Mary Habila, 26, died on June 27, 2026, in Uburu under circumstances that have generated widespread public interest after it emerged that she was attached to the Office of the Minister of Works following her secondment from the David Umahi Federal University of Medical Sciences.
Umahi has maintained that the incident was promptly reported to the police, denied allegations of any cover-up and insisted that a thorough and transparent investigation should be conducted. He has repeatedly called for a comprehensive autopsy to determine the exact cause of death.
The case has since sparked nationwide debate, with civil society organisations, women’s groups and other stakeholders demanding an independent and transparent investigation.
Although Habila’s family has now formally withdrawn from the case, rejected an autopsy and requested the release of her body for burial, the Ebonyi State Police Command has yet to announce when the remains will be released or whether the investigation into her death will be formally concluded.