A Nigerian pastor who is wanted by authorities in Cameroon has gone into hiding following the discovery of a corpse buried under a concrete slab at a property connected to his church in Yaoundé.
The Cameroon Tribune reported on Tuesday that the body was discovered on September 19 at around 9am by officers from the Nkoabang Special Police Station during an ongoing investigation involving Kedi Samuel Kenechukwu, who is also known as Ekedi Samuel.
Pastor Kenechukwu founded Mercy of God Ministry and is presently being sought by security authorities over allegations that include human trafficking, arrest, and kidnapping.
Multiple Cameroonian news outlets have covered the case, referring to Kenechukwu as “a Nigerian prophet operating in Cameroon since 2018.”
As reported by the Cameroon Tribune, investigators found a white-and-gold coffin buried roughly 1.5 meters below a concrete slab at the property in Nkoabang.
The body was said to be in a mummified state.
“The lid is broken. Inside, a body, a lady at first sight, dressed in a traditional blue outfit with gold embroidery, in a state of mummification, rests on a padding. This is not a normal grave,” the newspaper said.
The Cameroon Tribune reported that the discovery came to light after residents vandalized portions of the property belonging to the pastor, which led investigators to find the hidden underground area.
When the newspaper published its report, security officers were still waiting for authorization to carry out additional searches of the site in hopes of finding possible remains.
The identity of the deceased, along with the circumstances of the death, had not yet been determined.
The discovery occurred roughly 10 days after a search was conducted at the same Nkoabang property on September 9.
According to reports, investigators found five vehicles, several hundred kilograms of food, working freezers, and around 30 rooms on the property during that operation.
They also came across a pit roughly two meters deep, though its purpose remained unclear at that time.
The Nkoabang investigation came after an earlier operation on September 6 at a property linked to Mercy of God Ministry in Ngousso, Yaoundé.
Reportedly, twenty people—10 women, eight men, and two children aged six and seven—were found in a basement at the property.
These discoveries led security agencies to look into other locations said to be connected to the ministry.
Kenechukwu is still at large, and Cameroonian authorities have reportedly notified border police and brought in Interpol to help track him down.
The investigation into the activities at the properties and the circumstances surrounding the newly discovered body is still underway.
