INEC Principal Officer Found Dead 24Hours After Going Missing

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) said one of its senior officials who recently went missing in Anambra State has been found dead.

Duruocha Osita Joel, INEC’s Principal Executive Officer II on Grade Level 10, was found dead along Isu-Aniocha-Urum road in the Awka North Local Government Area of Anambra.

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Festus Okoye, INEC’s Commissioner for Information and Voter Education Committee in a statement Friday said Joel’s body was found on Thursday — about 24 hours after he went missing.

“On Wednesday, 28th September 2022, the Commission’s Administrative Secretary in Anambra State, Mr. Okwuonu Jude, reported the disappearance of a staff, Mr. Duruocha Osita Joel, a Principal Executive Officer II on Grade Level 10.

“On Thursday, 29th September, the Administrative Secretary further informed the Commission that Mr. Duruocha’s dead body was found along Isu-Aniocha-Urum road in Awka North Local Government Area of Anambra State, where unknown persons dumped him.

“Other staff members of the Commission, Duruocha’s brother and the Police have evacuated the body and deposited same in the morgue. The Police and other security agencies have commenced an investigation to determine the circumstances that led to Duruocha’s disappearance and eventual death,” said Okoye.

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While the circumstances surrounding Joel’s death are still sketchy, INEC had in its 2023 Election Project Plan identified physical attack on its personnel among the top 15 real and potential threats to the forthcoming election.

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