Cuttack, Jun 8 (PTI) The body of Nigerian under trial prisoner Augustine Odikpo, who died during treatment at SCB Medical College and Hospital here will be handed over to his relatives to be flown back to his country for the funeral, officials said on Wednesday.

Also Read | Dog Home Foundation, a Foundation With the Vision of Providing the Greatest Medical Care to Ill-Treated Pets.

The body is in the SCB Medical College Hospital mortuary since the under trial died there on May 26. The district administration has sanctioned some financial assistance from Red Cross Fund for taking the Nigerian's body to his country, Cuttack district collector Bhabani Shankar Chayni said.

Also Read | Prophet Remarks Row: Due to BJP, Country Faced Embarrassment and Was Forced to Apologise, Says Maharashtra CM Uddhav Thackeray.

Odikpo was arrested by Puri police from Patna on February 11, 2019 in connection with a case of cybercrime and was kept in Puri jail. He was admitted to the district headquarters hospital at Puri on May 9 this year due to his illness and later shifted to SCB Medical in Cuttack where he died. The body is in the mortuary due to official procedures.

Administrative officer of SCB Medical College Hospital Abinash Rout said that the foreigner's post-mortem was conducted in consultation with superintendent of Puri jail and that his brother will take the body.

“Statutory formalities were maintained. We have informed Puri Jail superintendent and IG Prisons and are coordinating with local police. After embalming the body, it has been kept in the anatomy department,” he added.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)