Lagos Court rejects Euracare Hospital bid to halt inquest into Adichie son's death

A Lagos State High Court has dismissed an application by Eurapharma Care Services Nigeria Limited, operators of Euracare Multi-Specialist Hospital, seeking to stop a coroner’s inquest into the death of Nkanu Esege. Nkanu was the 21-month-old son of renowned Nigerian author Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie and her husband, Dr. Ivara Esege.

Justice Aishat Opesanwo ruled that the hospital’s attempt to block the inquiry lacked merit, noting that under the Lagos State Coroner’s System Law of 2007, an inquest is a mandatory fact-finding exercise for deaths occurring in medical facilities. The judge rejected the hospital's argument that the cremation of the child's body deprived the coroner of jurisdiction, clarifying that the authority to conduct an inquest is based on where the death occurred, not the physical presence of the body.

Nkanu died on January 7, 2026, at Euracare Multi-Specialist Hospital. His parents have alleged medical negligence, claiming an excessive dose of sedatives and a lack of oxygen led to his cardiac arrest. While the hospital maintains that the child was treated according to standard protocols for a patient arriving in critical condition, the court has cleared the way for the statutory inquiry to proceed to establish the circumstances of the death.