Admin l Sunday, June 06, 2021
LEKKI, Lagos – Forensic pathologist, working with the Lagos State Teaching Hospital, Professor John Obafunwa today testified before the Justice Doris Okwubi Lekki Panel of Inquiry that 99 dead bodies were picked from across Lagos between October 20 and 27 during the #EndSARS protest and deposited in morgues.
Obafunwa told the panel that out of the 99 bodies, only three were recovered from the scene of the sporadic shooting at Lekki tollgate. Professor Obafunwa who was the coroner said the bodies were picked by the Lagos State Environmental Health Monitoring Unit, LASEHMU.
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He gave details of his forensic examination of the 3 bodies from Lekki Toll gate as follows:
According to him, the first body identified as number 005, EndSARS/Yaba/2020 brought in from Lekki bridge, on October 24 by the Lagos state government agency showed a fracture, a laceration on the left side of the skull and a body that was already decomposing. Examination showed bleeding into the chest cavity, following a blunt force trauma to the chest.”
“The second body , “041 died at about 1.45am on October 21; he was taken to Reddington hospital Lekki in an unconscious state as a result of open skull fracture. An attempt to revive him failed and he was pronounced dead after which he was taken to LASUTH on November 1 for post mortem.
“X-ray conducted prior to touching the body showed no bullet or pellets in the body. The x-ray revealed multiple skull fracture. Autopsy showed there was a ragged laceration running from the left side to the right side of the skull, further exploration of the wound showed bleeding into the scalp, multiple fracture of the skull, bleeding into the brain tissue. In the chest, there was bruises of the anterior, fracture of the left rib.
“Generally the internal organs were pale and it suggested there was severe blood loss. Hypertensive heart disease, upon examination under the microscope and samples for DNA, death was as a result of skull and brain injury which was due to blunt force trauma.”
The third victim, “062, according to him died at Lekki tollgate, while the body was deposited at the General Hospital Yaba. He added that autopsy conducted on November 2 revealed the cause of death to be severe blood loss as a result of disruption of major blood vessel as a result of gunshot injury.
Reacting to the development, Counsel to members of the #EndSars Movement, Olumide Fusika, faulted the presentation by the pathologist and made a plea for the details of all 99 bodies to be produced to the panel to enable him fully conduct his cross examination of the pathologist. Counsel to the Lagos State Government, Olukayode Enitan objected.
Chairman of the pane, Justice Doris Okuwobi noted that though it would take a lot of the panel’s time to sit through looking at 96 more bodies, she would bow to the majority decision of the lawyers. The panel then ordered the pathologist, Prof Obafunwa to produce the records and autopsy reports of the remaining 96 bodies during the next hearing.
