Family of man found hanging dead in Hindu temple demands justice
A man rides a bicycle past BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir Temple in Lira City East Division where a cleaner was found hanging dead. PHOTO/ PATRICK EBONG
What you need to know:
- Innocent Ocom said the circumstances under which his younger brother died are unclear as he urged justice.
The family of a 23-year-old man who was discovered hanging dead in Lira Hindu temple have asked authorities to expedite investigations into the demise of their son.
Deogracious Opio, who was employed as a casual labourer of BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir temple, a Hindu worship place on Agora Road, Junior Quarters in Lira City East Division was found lifeless on Wednesday at around 6am.
Innocent Ocom said the circumstances under which his younger brother died are unclear as he urged justice.
“As family, we want the office of the Inspector General of police (IGP) to speed up investigations into the death of our brother Deogracious Opio," he told Monitor.
“My heart tells me that our brother didn’t commit suicide himself as being confirmed by some authorities. Someone must have hanged him,” he believes.
Ocom claimed that “there might be some conspiracy between the police and the owners of the temple.”
“This is because they aren’t giving us time together with those Indians to discuss issues about the sendoff of our brother,” he observed.
Opio was the bread winner of the family, supporting his wife and several close relatives, Ocom noted.
"The police should not interfere with the investigations or try to bring out a report which we don’t understand,” he remarked in an interview.
On Friday Lira City workers’ representative Sarah Awor Angweri said: “As far as I’m concerned, the matter has to be investigated. They must tell us the scenarios under which this incident occurred.”
“The boy died at his place of work and that means when you employ someone, you have full responsibility over that person. I understand thos boy was residing at the temple. We need clear information on how the boy might have succumbed to suicide,” she emphasized.
Awor also vowed to ensure that the temple offers compensation to the bereaved family.
Earlier, the North Kyoga Regional Police Spokesman SP Jimmy Patrick Okema told this publication that “the report they have confirmed indicated that on June 6, 2023, the deceased bought bottles of soda and shared them with the security guard and a cook ‘requesting to be remembered.’”
Police records indicate that the report was filed by 50-year-old Richard Aporo, a supervisor of a private security company and a resident of Anai Ward, Lira City West Division.
SP Okema told this reporter that a statement has since been obtained from Aporo and the temple management as investigations are ongoing.
FYI
Around 11 people per 100,000 per year die by suicide in the African region, higher than the global average of nine per 100,000 people," according to the World Health Organization (WHO).
