The parents of the 12-year-old deceased student of Chrisland School, Ikeja, Whitney Adeniran, Blessing and Adeyemi Adeniran, have appeared before the coroner inquest set up to unravel the mystery surrounding the student’s death.
The Lagos State Government Counsel, Akin George, and one of the lawyers to Chrisland School, Bolaji Oyerinde, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), cross-examined them.
Mr Akin noted that the state also has witnesses that would be presented later to the court, including the pathologist that was present for the autopsy.
While the counsel to the deceased family, Femi Falana (SAN) said the deceased’s parents are the only witness and agreed to the court’s decision for the continuation of the matter.
Meanwhile, the counsel to an indicted vendor, Bimpe Ajegbomogun, also revealed that they have three witnesses to be presented to the court.
The Lagos State Government had filed a two-count charge of involuntary manslaughter and reckless and negligent acts against the vendor, Chrisland School Limited, and three of its staff.
The defendants are Ademoye Adewale, Kuku Fatai, Belinda Amao, and Nwatu Victoria.
A trending audio allegedly made by a Chrisland student claimed the deceased died after mistakenly touching a naked wire from one cotton candy vendor machine.
The parents also insisted at the court that their daughter was not sick before the school bus came to pick her up for the event on the fateful day.
The coroner had on 4 April granted the school’s request to access samples obtained from the deceased for an independent autopsy.
However, another counsel to Chrisland School, Olukayode Enitan, told the coroner that the management of the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital (LASUTH) where the autopsy was conducted was yet to respond to their request to get the samples.
Mr Enitan said the hospital has been giving excuses but “we informed them that they may hold on to the samples, pending when our consultant will be able to come in physically to examine them.”
The Lagos State Government had announced in February that the report of the autopsy it earlier conducted on the body revealed she died from “asphyxia and electrocution”, during the school’s inter-house sports event on 9 February.
However, the school, through its lawyer, Mr Enitan, told the coroner that the request for an independent autopsy was made because its representative pathologist during the one conducted earlier only attended as an observer and “did not carry out any tests on the samples.”