It was an emotional scene on Tuesday at the Coroner Court investigating the death of Mr Pelumi Onifade, a young journalist with Gboah TV, who was reportedly shot and arrested while covering the #EndSARS protests on October 24, 2020, as a DNA test result presented to the Court by the Lagos State DNA and Forensic Centre confirmed that a previously unidentified body was that of the late journalist.
Mrs. Adebose Onifade wept inconsolably after the investigating magistrate, Mrs Temitope Oladele, announced that she had received a sealed report from the DNA and Forensic Centre, confirming a DNA match between the body and the DNA sample provided by Mrs. Onifade and that the genetic analysis established that she is the mother of the previously unidentified body.
The ongoing inquest was convened on the orders of a Federal High Court in Lagos following a wrongful death suit brought against the Police and the Lagos State Government by Media Rights Agenda (MRA), demanding, among other things, an investigation into the late journalist’s death and the prosecution of those responsible for his death.
In his judgment in the suit delivered on July 19, 2024, Justice Ayokunle Olayinka Faji directed the Attorney-General to ensure an investigation into the circumstances of Mr. Onifade’s death and to conduct a coroner’s inquest to ascertain the cause of death as well as identify and prosecute those responsible for his death.
At the request of Mr. Alimi Adamu, lawyer to MRA and the Onifade Family, on May 22, 2026, the Coroner ordered the Chief Medical Examiner at the Department of Pathology and Forensic Medicine of the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital (LASUTH) to forward to the court within 21 days the autopsy report of a body with Tag No. 1385, which was among six bodies that LASUTH said in its March 24, 2026 report that autopsies were conducted after they were brought to the hospital on November 3, 2020.
She also ordered the Director of the DNA and Forensic Centre to forward to the court within 21 days the DNA test result of the body with Tag No. 1385 in the light of the statement in LASUTH’s report that DNA samples were collected from the bodies, including the one with Tag No. 1385, as well as reference samples from families who lost loved ones during the ENDSARS event, which were sent to the Centre for identification.
At the resumption of proceedings on June 23, 2026, during which the parents of the late journalist, Mr. Olatunde Onifade and Mrs. Onifade, were both present, Mr. Adamu, leading Mr. Monday Arunsi and Mr. Victor John, on behalf of MRA and the Onifade Family, told the Court that both orders had been duly served and asked for the Court’s guidance on whether the institutions had complied with the Court’s directives.
Responding, the Coroner said she did not receive any response from LASUTH, but received a document from the DNA and Forensic Centre, which was sealed and had not been tampered with. She said the report confirmed a DNA match between the body and the DNA sample provided by Mrs. Onifade, adding that according to the report, the genetic analysis established that Mrs. Onifade is the mother of Pelumi, thereby confirming the identity of the body.
She said, although she does not want to make a case for the hospital, “In all honesty, LASUTH is overwhelmed”. She, however, added that she believed that the autopsy had already been done or ought to have been done before now.
But Mr. Adamu said although he appreciated the Coroner’s empathy with LASUTH, Pelumi’s parents are human beings who have endured a prolonged wait for answers and for closure, adding that the fact that a second order or a follow-up had to be made to LASUTH was itself indicative of non-compliance with the Court’s earlier directives.
The Coroner cautioned him, saying: “With the way you are going, do not let me go and order the arrest of the Chief Examiner,” to which Mr. Adamu responded, I am sure the court will do it if it is needful.”
The Coroner, however, suggested that administrative options be first explored before any coercive step is taken, saying: “Let’s hold on a bit. I will send another reminder. The court will also follow up with them. Let’s explore all the options. I understand, and I sympathise with the parents, in all honesty. I understand that you want to get justice in this matter. I am not going to count from when it came to this point because it has started years before it came to this point. So, I sympathise with you, and I commend you.”
There were extensive exchanges between Mr. Adamu and the Coroner, during which the lawyer insisted that the family had exercised considerable restraint despite repeated police denial of any involvement in Pelumi’s death and their insistence that he did not die in their custody. Besides, he said, there is growing public interest in the matter, in addition to significant concern within the media community regarding the circumstances surrounding Pelumi’s disappearance and death, as he met his death while carrying out his work as a journalist.
The Coroner, however, directed that a final administrative reminder be issued to LASUTH for the immediate production of the autopsy report and advised MRA’s lawyers to physically visit LASUTH to facilitate compliance rather than relying solely on formal correspondence.
She said that should these efforts fail to secure compliance, she would be left with no alternative but to invoke the Court’s full powers under the law to compel the production of the outstanding report, including taking measures against the relevant officials. She thereafter adjourned the matter to July 7, 2026.
Source: Opera News
