Journalist Pelumi Onifade died from a firearm injury to the abdomen that caused massive internal bleeding, according to a postmortem examination conducted at the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital.
Media Rights Agenda disclosed this in a statement on Thursday, after the postmortem report was submitted to the Coroner Court investigating Onifade’s death.
The nine-page report, signed by Professor and Consultant Pathologist, Sunday Sokunle Soyemi, on July 30, 2026, listed the cause of death as massive haemoperitoneum and penetrating firearms injury to the abdomen.
Onifade, a journalist with Gboah TV, was reportedly shot and arrested by security operatives on October 24, 2020, while covering the #EndSARS protests in Lagos State.
The firearm projectile entered through the lower back and caused extensive damage to Onifade’s abdominal region.
The examination also found bony fragments embedded in the soft tissue of the abdomen and a fracture of the fifth lumbar vertebra.
The projectile travelled in a posterior-to-anterior, right-to-left and infero-superior direction, meaning it moved from the back towards the front, from right to left and from a lower to a higher position.
According to MRA, the autopsy was conducted on November 4, 2020, at the LASUTH morgue by Soyemi, with Professor John Oladapo Obafunwa, a supervising consultant, in attendance.
The body examined was tagged number 1385 and was later identified as Onifade through DNA analysis by the Lagos State DNA and Forensic Centre.
The organisation quoted the forensic report as concluding that the fatal injuries were caused by a firearm projectile entering the abdominal region, resulting in extensive internal damage and haemorrhage.
The postmortem report was submitted to the Coroner Court as part of proceedings into the circumstances surrounding Onifade’s death.
The inquest followed a Federal High Court judgment directing the Lagos State Government to investigate the circumstances of his death and conduct a coroner’s inquest.
The order followed a suit filed by MRA against the Lagos State Government and the Nigeria Police Force.
In a judgment delivered on July 19, 2024, Justice Ayokunle Faji directed the Attorney-General of Lagos State to take the necessary steps to investigate Onifade’s death and conduct an inquest to determine the cause of death and identify and prosecute those responsible.
The proceedings have been delayed by difficulties in obtaining the forensic documents.
On June 5, 2026, the Coroner Court in Lagos ordered LASUTH and the Lagos State DNA and Forensic Centre to submit the outstanding autopsy and DNA reports relating to body number 1385 within 21 days.
The order was made by investigating magistrate Temitope Oladele after Alimi Adamu, counsel to Onifade’s family, asked the court to compel the institutions to produce the documents.
At the hearing, LASUTH had previously confirmed that an autopsy was conducted on the unidentified body tagged 1385, while DNA samples were collected from the remains and Onifade’s parents for identification.
A March 24, 2026 report by LASUTH had also confirmed that autopsies were conducted on six bodies brought to the hospital on November 3, 2020, including body number 1385. The hospital also confirmed that DNA samples had been processed for identification.
However, LASUTH did not produce the autopsy report or send a representative to the March 24 hearing. This prompted MRA’s legal team to ask the court to begin contempt proceedings against the hospital.
The coroner instead gave LASUTH another opportunity to comply and subsequently ordered the hospital to submit the report within 21 days.
The latest postmortem findings now form part of the forensic evidence before the Coroner Court as proceedings continue into the circumstances surrounding Onifade’s death.
