Police, hospital flout order of Osun panel of inquiry, refuse to release corpse
The Osun State Judicial Panel of Inquiry on Police Brutality, Human Rights Violations and Related Extra Judicial Killings and the family of slain Akeem Olalekan Ibitoye who was allegedly murdered on April 25th, 2017 by some police officers have berated the Osun Police Command and the management of the State Specialist Hospital, Osogbo, for their refusal to release Akeem’s corpse.
The Panel had at its sitting last week Friday ordered the immediate release of the corpse of the slain man by the concerned authorities.
But the family of the deceased registered their grievances on Friday at the resumed hearing of the case before the panel in Osogbo following the refusal of the hospital to release the corpse as ordered by the panel.
Counsel to the petitioners (family of the deceased), Barrister Kehinde Adesiyan, informed the Panel that the corpse had not been released.
He explained that all efforts by the family of the deceased to secure the corpse were frustrated by the hospital management.
According to him, the hospital authorities refused to release the corpse on the pretense that there was no written statement to that effect from the Police who deposited the corpse.
Reacting to the matter, Mr. Teslim Ibitoye, an elder brother to the deceased, said the action of the Police not to ensure the immediate release of the corpse as directed by the panel was a gross defiance to constituted authorities.
The petitioner who claimed to have suffered serious injuries from the incident, stated that he still lives with the gun pellets stucked in his body since 2017.
He lamented the rigour and suffering that the family had gone through at the hands of the Police since the incident occurred.
He appealed to the panel to grant all their prayers as presented in the petition, saying the release of the corpse of his brother remained first priority.
Ibitoye stated further that the family had approached the Panel to seek payment of N50million as compensation and prevail on the Police and other concerned authorities to take care of his medical treatment abroad which requires him to undergo surgical operation to remove the gun pellets out of his body.
Ruling on the case, the Chairman of the Panel, Justice Akin Oladimeji (rtd.), directed the Police authorities to follow the petitioners and their counsel to the hospital to secure the release of the corpse to the family.
He thereafter adjourned the case to Friday, March 26th, 2021 for adoption of the final written addresses of both counsels.
Buttressing the position of the Panel on the case during a chat with newsmen, Justice Oladimeji said it was unfortunate that the concerned authorities undermined the powers of the Panel.
“It is rather unfortunate that the Panel of Inquiry will give an order for the release of a corpse by a hospital authority and they refused it. They must have done that out of error, out of lack of understanding of the powers of the Panel.
“We have however directed the Police to follow the petitioners and their counsel to go to the hospital and get the corpse released to the family. It is unfortunate that the corpse has been there since 2017,” Oladimeji added.
