Prince Hon.A.S Abimbola a Lagos based Human Right and community leader sends out word to the Attorney General of Lagos State, the Minister of Internal Affairs and the Commissioner of Police Lagos not to dare the legal consequences that may follow if they do not release the corpse of his client, Saheed Odumade (a.k.a Rasheed Odumade) to the family for burial.
Saheed died at Ikoyi Prison on the 5th of September 2019 in a suspicious manner while on a holding charge D/18/2017 for armed robbery and the Chief Coroner of Lagos state has refused to carry out or direct the District Coroner for Epe to carry out an inquest despite the repeated demand in writing and the present application in court (Suit No: EPD/9165MFHR/2019 for the release of the body for a befitting burial).
“The deceased is a Muslim and they have held on to his body for almost a year. Our letter requesting for coroner’s inquest was received at the office of the Chief Coroner of Lagos state on the 29th November, 2019 and nothing has been done.We are prepared for a virual court to conduct a corona inquest into the death in this era of corona pandemic.
“But the Lagos State Government has done nothing in respect of our application for the inquest,” Mr. Abimbola stated.
Mr. Abimbola and the family of the deceased is apprehensive that the corpse may be included with the corpses to be given mass burial which are usually unclaimed corpses or in the present situation corpses of people who died of the coronavirus and have no means to bury according state regulations.
In a statement made available to lawyerwaka.com, Mr. Abimbola stated that he has authority to institute actions against the Lagos State Government and the Ministry of Interior if his application is not granted. Mr. Abimbola expects that where his application is refused, reasons for same should be given.
