KUCHING: The body of a man buried in an earth plot weeks before Christmas Day has apparently vanished mysteriously.
The deceased, a Sabahan married to a local, was originally laid to rest at the Roman Catholic burial ground near Kampung Bratan in Penrissen after his sudden death recently.
Villagers told The Borneo Post that the man, believed to be in his 30s, had collapsed during the burial of his mother-in-law sometime last month and was buried at the same cemetery two days later.
However, to everyone’s shock, his remains vanished mysteriously a few days after burial.
A report on the disappearance of the body was made at the Kota Padawan police station on Monday.
According to his widow’s relatives, the mystery came to light when church members, who attended a prayer service last Sunday, realised that earth covering the man’s grave had been flattened.
Initially they thought the earth could have been washed away when the burial ground was flooded to above waist-level on Dec 26.
Out of curiosity, they took a closer look at the grave and were shocked to discover that the casket, which was partially transparent, was actually empty.
Yesterday, a close relative of the man’s widow confirmed the mysterious situation, but said the family preferred to keep things to themselves.
There has been no clear explanation as to how the remains suddenly disappeared because the coffin and its cover were still intact, although there has been speculation that his body could have been exhumed shortly after burial and taken back to Sabah by his relatives.
However, this theory is unsupported because moving the body, either by land or air, would have required official documentation.
Moreover, the burial ground is visible from the road and any attempt to exhume the body would have been noticed.
All this has made the case of the missing body even more mysterious, with some believing it could have been a supernatural act.