The autopsy of a two-year-old pupil of Smiley Kids Montessori, Sangotedo, Lagos State, indicates that she died of drowning. However, suspicions surrounding her death still linger and suspects must wait to have their day in court.
Her family is concerned someone may have thrown their child into the pool or left her unsupervised.
When the toddler died in January, the school said she drowned in the swimming pool on its premises. But the parents had doubts. She had gone to school healthy that morning until around 4:36 pm when the school broke the tragic news of her demise.
John Ogbodo, the girl’s father, told FIJ on Monday that the autopsy was performed in February.
READ MORE: Drowned or Electrocuted? Parents of Deceased 2-Year-Old Lagos Pupil Consider Thursday for Autopsy
“I was there at the hospital when they were doing the autopsy, and the chief pathologist issued a death certificate, with the cause of death stated there,” he said.
“The autopsy is just a comprehensive report. What was stated in the death certificate was that she drowned, could not breathe and died in the process.
“So, whatever is going to be in the autopsy report will just be a comprehensive report to the coroner, which the police will obtain and present to the court.”
Ogbodo also disclosed that the suspects who were arrested at the school in connection to his daughter’s death and were still in custody were awaiting the Directorate of Public Prosecution (DPP)’s advice.
Some of the primary functions of the DPP, as seen on the website of the Lagos State Ministry of Justice, include issuing legal advice on case files sent by the police, instituting prosecution against defendants, prosecuting criminal cases at both the High Courts and the Magistrate Courts and handling of petitions.
FIJ earlier reported that staff members of Smiley Kids Montessori — Thomas Ayodele, the proprietor; Antonia Igbafe, the head of the nursery class; Helen Obhodaghe, the class teacher; Mohammed Hauwa and Mohammed Habibat, caregivers — were arrested for interrogation.
Udofia Ini-Obong, the pool instructor, was also arrested but released because he was not a staff member and had only gone to the school to help take the toddler out of the pool.
READ ALSO: Smiley Kids Montessori Claims 2-Year-Old Drowned in School but Parents Want the Truth
“The people [arrested] are waiting for the DPP’s advice. They were charged [arraigned] on February 19, and are in prison [remanded] while awaiting the DPP’s advice.”
On his daughter’s death, Ogbodo believes that it was either carelessness on the part of the school or she was thrown into the swimming pool where she was said to have drowned.
“I still believe that my daughter would not have just jumped into that pool. The water is not that full and maybe someone threw her in the deeper part of the pool. But then, I don’t think the water was deep enough to have submerged her,” Ogbodo told FIJ.
“I am sure the autopsy would say she died by drowning, and we cannot go contrary to what the autopsy is saying because there is no camera to corroborate it. We could not get the CCTV footage for the swimming pool area. We only got the footage of the front of the school, which is the car park.”
Abimbola Abatta is a reporter with FIJ, writing reports in partnership with Report for the World which matches local newsrooms with talented emerging journalists to report on under-covered issues around the globe.
The post Autopsy Indicates Toddler Drowned in Lagos School, Suspects Await DPP Advice appeared first on Foundation For Investigative Journalism.