Fifteen months after 45- year -old Pastor Esere Okilo was declared missing by his family in Bayelsa State, residents of Jacob Beredugo Street in Yenagoa were shocked when the skeleton of the pastor was discovered in his apartment.
It was learnt that the cleric until his disappearance was residing at Jacob Beredugo Street, off Osiri Road in Yenagoa, the Bayelsa State capital.
The deceased was said to be from Nembe-Bassambiri.
The skeleton was discovered by the deceased female relative, who was having challenges with accomodation and decided to check on the residence of her brother by looking through the window and found the skeleton of his brother sitting on the toilet seat with only his singlet on.
The discovery, which occurred on Wednesday night, threw residents into confusion, as many claimed they were unaware of his death as they did not perceive any foul odour of a decomposing corpse.
According to residents in the area, the deceased known to be a reserved man of God. was staying in a compound comprising of two flats. While he stayed in one flat, his elder brother and his wife occupied the other flat.
“The two brothers were not on talking terms as he was reported to always referred to the brother and the wife as a bewitched duo,” a resident said.
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It was further learnt that few months ago, the immediate family had a meeting, expressing concerns over his whereabouts and declared him missing.
But some other family members thought he had gone on one of his usual church pilgrimages.
Another neighbour noted that the operatives of the Ekeki Division of the Bayelsa State Police Command, who came to evacuate the skeleton of the deceased, arrested the said elder brother on the alleged suspicion of covering up the death of the deceased.
At the Federal Medical Center in Yenagoa, morticians at the morgue, claimed that there were signs of formalin sprinkled on the corpse to cover up the foul smell coming from the apartment.
Another eyewitness claimed the skeleton was locked in the toilet from inside.
