A not-for-profit and press freedom advocacy group, Media Rights Agenda (MRA), has rejected a report presented by the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital (LASUTH) claiming that it was unable to identify the body of 20-year-old Gboah TV journalist, Pelumi Onifade, murdered by the police on October 24, 2020, during the #ENDSARS protest.

The group also rejected LASUTH’s claim that DNA samples, including that of the victim’s parents, conducted at the Lagos State DNA and Forensic Centre located on its premises, were destroyed following an attack on the centre.

The MRA objection to the hospital’s claim was contained in a statement on Wednesday by its communication officer, Idowu Adewale.

Saying the hospital’s claim was ‘fundamentally inconsistent,’ the MRA lead counsel, Alimi Adamu, argued that the DNA samples collected from the victim’s parents could not have been among those destroyed.

He cited official records which showed that the centre was set ablaze on October 23, 2020, a day before Mr Onifade’s death.

The lawyer added that the DNA samples from the victim’s family members were collected a few days after the victim’s death.

“Pelumi’s parents, who were present in court, had subsequent interactions with relevant officials of LASUTH, including Professor John Obafunwa, the Chief Pathologist, following the collection of their DNA samples and that at no time were they informed that the samples had been compromised, destroyed, or that there was a need for re-sampling,” the statement noted.

Based on sequence of events, Mr Adamu stated that the teaching hospital’s report before the coroner’s inauguration by the Lagos State government was “manifestly inconsistent and cannot be reconciled with the established sequence of events, thereby rendering the explanation untenable both logically and evidentially.”

It also accused the hospital of failing to comply with an initial order by the coroner, directing the hospital management to produce a comprehensive report on a body believed to be the victim’s remains.

At the inquiry panel, the coroner, Temitope Oladele, described the contested DNA matter as material, stating that the foremost and pressing concern of the court was the identification, location and production of the body, considered the central subject of the ongoing inquest proceedings.

Following the report presented by the LASUTH, the coroner directed the chief medical director of the facility in Yaba to produce a detailed report on the whereabouts and status of the victim’s body, with Tag No. 1385, within 14 days of service of the order.

The coroner adjourned the matter to April 28, 2026 for further hearing.