A close friend and colleague of late Mary Habila, the nurse attached to the David Umahi Federal University of Medical Sciences and seconded to the Federal Ministry of Works, has narrated the events leading to Habila’s death, revealing that the deceased appeared healthy and cheerful just hours before she was found lifeless in Ebonyi State.
The account is contained in a sworn affidavit deposed before the Ebonyi State High Court by Anita Baaki, a physiotherapist from Benue State, as police continue investigations into the circumstances surrounding Habila’s death.
Baaki disclosed that she travelled alongside the late nurse and other officials of the Federal Ministry of Works from Abuja to Ebonyi State on June 24, 2026, for an official assignment under the Minister of Works, Senator David Umahi.
According to her, the team was accommodated in separate but adjoining rooms at a staff chalet within the minister’s country home in Uburu, Ohaozara Local Government Area, stressing that the facility was reserved for ministry personnel and associates and not the minister’s private residence.
Recounting Habila’s final hours, Baaki said she last saw her alive on the evening of June 26, shortly after she returned from making her hair.
She stated that Habila briefly visited her room to show off her new hairstyle before the two colleagues chatted and joked together.
“Mary told me she was tired and wanted to take a shower before sleeping. That was the last time I saw her alive,” Baaki stated in the affidavit.
Baaki said she became alarmed the following morning when Habila failed to leave her room as expected.
She explained that repeated phone calls to Habila went unanswered, prompting her to knock on the door. When there was still no response and the room remained locked from the inside, she alerted a domestic staff member to search the premises.
After confirming that Habila was nowhere else within the compound, other ministry officials were informed, and the door to her room was eventually forced open.
According to the affidavit, Habila was discovered lying unconscious on the floor near the entrance of the room.
She was immediately rushed to the David Umahi Federal University Teaching Hospital, where doctors reportedly confirmed that she was dead on arrival.
Baaki said she voluntarily made the statement without pressure or coercion to assist investigators in uncovering the circumstances surrounding her colleague’s death.
Meanwhile, police investigations into the incident are still ongoing.
Lawyers representing the Minister of Works have also requested that a comprehensive forensic autopsy be conducted to establish the exact cause of Habila’s death before her remains are released to her family for burial.
