Court orders Ondo govt to pay N25m over missing infant in juvenile home

Ondo State Court Orders Government to Pay Damages Over Disappeared Infant

A High Court in Ondo State has mandated the state government and the Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Development to pay 25 million naira in damages to a woman whose infant son went missing while under the care of a government-operated juvenile home.

Justice Oluyemi Akintan Osadebay delivered the ruling in Akure, stating that state authorities were responsible for the disappearance of Mrs. Opeyemi Adegboyega’s three-month-old son, Omoniyi Oluwaseun, who was placed in the Ondo State Juvenile Home in 2017.

Reports indicate that Adegboyega’s son was entrusted to the Ministry of Women Affairs while she received treatment for depression and schizophrenia at the state Neuro-Psychiatric Hospital. After her discharge, she was informed that her son had died and that his body was in a mortuary. However, inquiries at the State Specialist Hospital revealed no record of a deceased child matching her son’s description being received from ministry officials.

Frustrated by the circumstances surrounding her son’s disappearance, Adegboyega, through her attorney Mr. Oju Kekemeke, initiated legal proceedings against the state government and the ministry.

In his judgment, Justice Osadebay found the defendants’ explanations to be unconvincing and lacking in credibility. He noted that the government failed to provide any documentation confirming that the child had died, sustained injuries, or was otherwise accounted for while in custody. The judge also pointed out the absence of medical records, mortuary documents, or burial records to support claims of the infant’s death.

The court determined that the child’s disappearance from the juvenile home was a consequence of the defendants’ negligence. Justice Osadebay recognized the severe emotional distress and psychological trauma suffered by Adegboyega due to her son’s vanishing while under the Ministry’s supervision.

As part of the ruling, the court awarded 10 million naira in exemplary and aggravated damages and 15 million naira as general damages for the emotional suffering experienced by Adegboyega. Additionally, the court granted 200,000 naira to cover legal costs.

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