A Yaba Chief Magistrate Court has ordered Femi Falana Chambers to initiate the exhumation and autopsy of ten victims who died in the Afriland Towers fire incident that occurred on September 16, 2025, in Lagos.
The directive was issued on Tuesday by Senior Magistrate Atinuke Adetunji, following reports that some of the deceased had already been buried.
“The petitioner should write to the Lagos State Government for the exhumation of the dead victims and carry out an autopsy,” Magistrate Adetunji stated.
The order followed a petition from Femi Falana Chambers, dated September 29, 2025, and addressed to the Chief Coroner of Lagos State, Justice Mojisola Dada.
In the petition, Mr. Femi Falana (SAN) requested a coroner’s inquest to determine the circumstances surrounding the deaths and ensure accountability.
During Tuesday’s preliminary sitting, Magistrate Adetunji instructed all parties to file the necessary applications before the next hearing.
The court also summoned several institutions and agencies, including the United Bank for Africa (UBA), Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), Fire Service, Afriland Towers, United Capital, Lagos State Emergency Management Agency (LASEMA), and the Lagos State Safety Commission, among others.
The magistrate further directed the petitioner to consult with the families of the deceased to identify those willing to have their relatives exhumed for examination. She also urged eyewitnesses to come forward to assist the court with evidence.
Representing Falana’s chambers, lawyer Yahaya Atata told the court that the session was intended to bring together all relevant parties and discuss the modalities for the inquest.
However, Magistrate Adetunji noted that the parties were not fully prepared, stressing that the inquest could only proceed once all required documents had been filed.
Counsel for one of the deceased, A. O. Mema, informed the court that his client, Peter Ifaranmaye, a manager with the FIRS, had already been buried.
In response, Magistrate Adetunji insisted that an autopsy remained critical to the investigation. “Autopsy is fundamental. We cannot just hold an inquest; there must be an autopsy to know exactly what happened,” she maintained.
The matter was adjourned until November 26, 2025, for further proceedings.
The Afriland Towers fire broke out in the early hours of September 16, 2025, at the commercial complex on Broad Street, Lagos Island, claiming at least ten lives and injuring several others. Eyewitnesses reported that the blaze spread quickly through multiple floors before emergency responders could contain it.
