MohBad – Why Autopsy On Exhumed Corpse May Not Reveal Natural Cause Of Death – Pathologists

MohBad – Why Autopsy On Exhumed Corpse May Not Reveal Natural Cause Of Death – Pathologists

Professor Daniel Anyiam, an expert in Anatomic Pathology at the Faculty of Medicine, Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Anambra State, emphasized that conducting an autopsy on an exhumed body might not always reveal the natural cause of death. He stressed the importance of performing an autopsy before burial.

However, the seasoned anatomic pathologist at Nnamdi Azikiwe University Teaching Hospital, Nnewi, pointed out that there are certain causes of death, such as gunshot wounds, accidents, and fractures, that can be identifiable through an autopsy after exhumation.

He further explained that the cause of death can be categorized as either natural or unnatural.

An autopsy, as described by Mayo Clinic, is a postmortem examination conducted by pathologists to determine the cause of death, assess the extent of known diseases and conditions, and confirm medical diagnoses.

On Thursday, September 21, the remains of the late singer, Ilerioluwa Aloba, popularly known as Mohbad, were exhumed by a joint team of the Nigeria Police Force and health officials. The Lagos State Police Command confirmed the exhumation and announced plans to conduct an autopsy on the singer’s remains.

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The police also apprehended the nurse who allegedly administered an injection to the deceased singer before his demise.

Mohbad passed away on September 12, 2023. Following his death, there have been allegations of assault on Mohbad by the well-known singer, Naira Marley, and his entourage.

In an exclusive interview with PUNCH Healthwise, Professor Anyiam addressed the feasibility of determining the actual cause of death after exhumation. He clarified that in cases of natural deaths, an autopsy conducted weeks after burial is unlikely to yield definitive results due to the process of putrefaction (decay of the body).

He added that in situations involving violent deaths, such as severe beatings or gunshot wounds, an autopsy after burial may still provide evidence of trauma, including broken bones and other pertinent findings.

“The result of the investigation will depend on what was the cause of death because there are different causes of death. If the cause of death was natural, likely, you will not get much if the body has been buried and exhumed.

“But suppose it was a gunshot, if you do an autopsy, you will still see the bullet with the dead body.

“Suppose he had an accident and had multiple fractures or he was beaten and had a broken skull and so on, we are going to see that one.”

The pathologist noted that an autopsy is very expensive and out of the reach of the poor, adding that it is even more expensive to carry out an autopsy after burial than before burial.

The professor said, “So, there are some causes of death you could see post-mortem after the body had been buried. Even if you exhume it, you will still see it. It will be there looking at you.

“But there are some causes of death, for example, if the heart is larger than normal, it is possible that by the time you exhume it, you may not be able to detect the cause of death. It will be difficult to measure that heart again.

“But you could do that if it was done before burial. However, there are some causes of death you can always get even after burial.
“Also, there are some causes of death that you will not see after burial and when we can’t get it, we say the cause of death is unidentifiable in that case.”

Research indicates that the cause of death can be attributed to either injury in cases of violent deaths or disease in cases of natural deaths.

Forensic autopsies, also referred to as medicolegal autopsies, are postmortem examinations conducted to address medicolegal objectives. These procedures are carried out in compliance with directives from the relevant legal authority responsible for investigating sudden, unexpected, suspicious, mysterious, unwitnessed, obscure, unexplained, or litigious deaths. This includes criminal deaths, industrial deaths, and deaths associated with medical or surgical treatment where medical negligence or anesthetic-related issues are alleged.

In a 2022 article published by the National Institutes of Health, a division of the United States Department of Health and Human Services, the authors emphasized that forensic autopsies play a crucial role within the medicolegal death investigation system.

The specific framework of the medicolegal death investigation system may vary from one country to another, and even within a country. For instance, in the United States of America, both the coroner system and medical examiner system are prevalent methods of conducting medicolegal death investigations.

The authors outlined the general objectives of performing a forensic autopsy, which may vary depending on the individual case. However, in broad terms, these objectives encompass establishing the deceased’s identity, determining the cause of death, aiding in confirming or refuting the alleged manner of death, and, whenever possible, estimating the time since death (postmortem interval).

It is crucial to note that, in most jurisdictions worldwide, the final determination regarding the manner of death is made by a court of law. This decision is based not solely on medical evidence but also on other contextual pieces of evidence. Medical evidence represents just one component of the overall assessment,” the authors stated.

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