Former President of the Benue State Customary Court of Appeal, Mrs. Margaret Igbeta, has reportedly been tragically killed in her residence on Wantor Kwange Street in Makurdi, the capital city of the state.
The lifeless body of the 72-year-old Igbeta was discovered in her home covered in blood on Thursday night, according to Daily Trust. It is suspected that she may have been murdered the previous day, given the state of her body.
Her corpse was found in her house, situated across from the BSU College of Medicine along Gboko Road in Makurdi.
The police, who retrieved the body, are investigating the incident and collecting information from her family members to aid in the arrest of the culprits.
The Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), SP Catherine Anene, stated in a text message, “Let me get to town and understand what happened.”
Igbeta’s legal career saw her rise from being a Pupil State Counsel in the Benue State Ministry of Justice in 1976 to becoming a judge in 1995. She served as the President of the Benue State Customary Court of Appeal from 2003 until her retirement on October 17, 2015, upon reaching the statutory retirement age of 65.
It’s worth noting that in 2019, the Federal Government had filed an application in a High Court in Abuja seeking an interim forfeiture of N840 million linked to the now deceased retired justice. The government, through the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), alleged that the funds were traced to a proxy bank account operated by Igbeta’s maid.