There was confusion inside the Osun State High Court premises on Monday morning as Magdalene Chiefuna, the second defendant in the ongoing Timothy Adegoke murder trial, slumped in court after coughing for some period of time.
Timothy Adegoke was the Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife postgraduate student who died under unexplainable circumstances in the Hilton Hotel, Ile-Ife, in November 2021.
The collapse of Chiefuna promoted the presiding judge, Justice Adepele Ojo, to temporarily adjourn the matter to allow the defendant to be attended to.
Magdalene Chiefuna, who has been standing trial along with six others in the ongoing Timothy Adegoke murder trial, started coughing shortly after court proceedings started and before long, she had slumped.
The Court Clerk and personnel of the Nigerian Correctional Services quickly rushed in to resuscitate her.
Monday’s trial at the Osun State High Court was slated for the defendants to open their defence today following the closing of the prosecution case in March.
Femi Falana, a renowned human rights lawyer, had been given full charge by the Osun State Government to prosecute the matter based on a request by the Adegoke family for fiat to be granted to the lawyer.