The Lagos State Government has cleared the five accused Dowen College students of complicity in the death of Sylvester Oromoni (Jnr).
The state government also cleared five employees of the Lekki School of any blame in the case.
The decision was conveyed in legal advice signed by Adetutu Osinusi, the Director of Public Prosecution (DPP), yesterday.
Oromoni died last November after efforts to save his life failed. The 12-year-old boy was alleged to have been attacked by five of his senior colleagues for refusing to join a cult.
Oromoni’s father had claimed that his child was beaten and fed a liquid chemical that eventually claimed his life.
But Dowen College had dismissed the claim, saying the boy sustained injuries while playing football with his colleagues.
Hakeem Odumosu, Lagos Police Commissioner had, thereafter, ordered a probe into the case while the school was sealed off.
Two autopsies were done on the deceased, one by the Delta police and the second by the force’s Lagos Command.
The first autopsy earlier released to the public had revealed that the deceased died of “chemical intoxication.”
Following a police probe, Odumosu said findings had been forwarded to the DPP and a response had been received.
In the DPP’s advice released yesterday, it was stated that the police probe and the two autopsies conducted on the body of the deceased student failed to establish a prima facie case against the suspects.
It added that the interim and final autopsy reports issued by the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital (LASUTH) and toxicology report of post-mortem samples revealed the cause of death as “Septicaemia, Lobar Pneumonia with Acute Pyelonephritis, Pyomyositis of the right ankle, and Acute Bacteria Pneumonia due to severe Sepsis.”
According to the DPP report, there was no prima facie case of murder, involuntary manslaughter, and or malicious administering of poison with intent to harm [the deceased] against the five accused Dowen College students.
The state cleared the minors of belonging to unlawful society (cultism) due to insufficient facts to establish the claim.
Lagos State also cleared the school and five of its employees (Celina Uduak, Valentine Igboekweze, Hammed Ayomo Bariyu, Adesanya Olusesan Olusegun, and one Adeyemi) of the alleged offence of “negligent act causing harm.”
The state government, therefore, directed that all the suspects should be released if they are still in custody.
Reacting to the development yesterday, a top official of the College, who spoke to our reporter in confidence, described the development as a welcome one.
He said: “It is a welcome development for us. As a result of the incident, we have been a bit careful on what we say; because the matter is a very sensitive one.”
He, however, promised that the authorities of Dowen College would officially respond to the issue soon.
Also, yesterday, the father of Sylvester Oromoni (Jnr.), reacted to the release of the suspects linked to the murder of the teenager.
Hours after the move, the father of the deceased, Mr Sylvester Oromoni, said the news did not come to him as a surprise after the students were granted bail even before the stipulated time granted by the courts for the police to carry out their investigation.
Oromoni said contrary to the results conducted by the Lagos State Government, there was another autopsy carried out by the Delta State Police Command which suggested that his late son may have been fed with harmful chemicals.
He, however, insisted he will not give up and that his family will meet with his lawyers on the way forward.
“This one is not new to us. I remember December 31 when the Commissioner of Police was making his speech, he mentioned that at the instance of the governor, the Attorney-General and the DPP, they have completed their investigation.
“They discovered that the children, housemasters have no case so he has released them on bail, discharged. He is not the court to decide this matter. What I will tell you is that the family will sit with our lawyers, we will respond appropriately and that time, all of you will be there.
“On December 21, the same Commissioner of Police told me that they were not done with their investigation. They also told me that they are writing to the Attorney-General of the state and the governor to return those boys back.
“Okay look at the holiday. When did they write to the Attorney-General to send those boys back to complete their investigation? We did not hear anything like that. At what point did they complete their investigation?
“There was a holiday on Monday and Tuesday and all of that. Don’t worry; we are not bothered. We have heard of this before. This is just the beginning of the case,” he said.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!