Our Reporter, Abuja
The Coroner’s Court investigating the death of Pelumi Onifade has given the Chief Medical Director of Lagos State University Teaching Hospital (LASUTH) 14 days to submit a report on the whereabouts of an unidentified body believed to be connected to the case.
The directive was issued by the investigating magistrate, Temitope Oladele, during proceedings of the inquest on March 3, 2026.
Onifade, a journalist with Gboah TV, was reportedly shot and arrested while covering the #EndSARS protests on October 24, 2020.
The court’s order followed an application by lawyer Alimi Adamu, who led Monday Arunsi and Somto Afulukwe as counsel to Media Rights Agenda and the family of the deceased journalist.
Adamu informed the court that LASUTH had failed to comply with an earlier directive issued on November 18, 2025, requiring the hospital to produce a “comprehensive and specific report” on a body tagged 1385, which the hospital reportedly received from Ikorodu General Hospital on November 3, 2020, and later conducted a post-mortem examination on the same month.
At the resumed hearing, Adebola Araba appeared for the Office of the Attorney-General of Lagos State.
Adamu also told the court that Onifade’s parents, Olatunde Onifade and Bose Onifade, were present during the proceedings. The coroner acknowledged their presence and formally expressed condolences to the family over the death of their son.
Counsel further informed the court that the prolonged strike at LASUTH, which had delayed progress on the matter, had been called off, and sought confirmation on whether the hospital had submitted the requested report.
In response, the coroner asked if the earlier order had been duly served on the hospital. Arunsi confirmed that the order was served on LASUTH in January 2026.
However, Oladele noted that the court file did not contain proof of service, prompting Arunsi to promise to follow up with the court’s bailiff, whom he said had earlier confirmed that the proof had been filed.
Arunsi also told the court that he had visited LASUTH earlier that day, explaining that officials at the hospital’s administrative block acknowledged receiving the court order but could not confirm whether the hospital had complied with it.
Adamu subsequently observed that the November 18, 2025 directive was addressed generally to LASUTH and not to any specific official, and therefore requested a fresh order directed specifically to the Chief Medical Director of the hospital.
Granting the application, Oladele ordered the Chief Medical Director of LASUTH to produce a report on the body with tag number 1385, said to have been received on behalf of the hospital from Ikorodu General Hospital on November 3, 2020, within 14 days of receiving the order.
The case was adjourned to March 24, 2026, for further proceedings.
The coroner’s inquest was convened following a directive of the Federal High Court of Nigeria in Lagos after a suit filed by Media Rights Agenda against the police and the Lagos State Government.
In a judgment delivered on July 19, 2024, Ayokunle Olayinka Faji ordered the Attorney-General of Lagos State to ensure a full investigation into the circumstances surrounding Onifade’s death and to conduct a coroner’s inquest to determine the cause of death and identify those responsible.
