[BREAKING] Adeleke: Absence of interpreter stalls nurse’s testimony before coroner

The nurse, Mr Alfred Aderibigbe, who allegedly administered some injections on the late Senator Isiaka Adeleke, at home shortly before his death could not testify before the coroner, Mr Olusegun Ayilara.

Counsel for the nurse, Mr Lekan Alabi, said his client needed an interpreter due to his inability to speak English language fluently.

The nurse had appeared and on entering inside the witness box, he started shaking his head apparently in regret but the coroner, who noticed this told him to relax.

The coroner told him, “I know you are traumatised, you don’t need it. Relax this is not a criminal court.”

But his counsel told the court that Aderibigbe would require an interpreter before he could testify.

The coroner adjourned to Thursday for his evidence.

The pathologist, Dr Olufemi Solaja, who carried out the autopsy on this body of the late senator had earlier the coroner that the result of the toxicology test done on Adeleke showed high levels of alcohol; sedatives and analgesic in the system.

He said there was no trace of poison nor heavy metal found in his blood and he subsequently ruled out poison as the cause of the death.

Solaja said the heart of the late senator weighed twice the expected size of the heart of normal people of his age and sex but said his lungs and kidneys were okay.

He said, “He ( Adeleke) apparently vomited and asphyxiated due to deep sedation. The aspiration of the gastric content blocked the airwaves depriving the body of oxygen.This could cause the vital centres to shut down and could lead to death.

“The toxicology showed abnormally high levels of alcohol, sedatives and analgesics in the blood of the deceased. There was no poison or traces of heavy metals. The police did the toxicology. One Benedict Agbo, who is the police toxicologist did it.”

The pathologist subsequently tendered the autopsy report before the coroner.

Punch