A pathologist with the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital, Ikeja, Dr S.S. Soyele, on Tuesday told a Lagos State High Court in Ikeja that Ronke Shonde, who was allegedly murdered by her husband, Lekan, died from severe brain injury.
Soyele said a postmortem conducted on Ronke’s corpse revealed that her brain was heavy, swollen and filled with water. 51-year-old Lekan allegedly beat his wife to death at their home in the Egbeda-Idimu area of Lagos State.
He was alleged to have locked the door on the corpse and their two children before the incident was discovered by a housekeeper and later reported to the police.
The man, who surrendered himself to the police after days in hiding, claimed that he only slapped the deceased during a disagreement on the night of the incident.
He accused Ronke of sleeping with one Kayode, the general manager of a publishing company.
At the Tuesday proceedings, while being led in evidence by the state prosecutor, Y.G. Oshoala, the pathologist said it was unlikely that the deceased inflicted the injuries on herself because of the multiplicity of the wounds.
He said, “A bruise was found on her left jaw. During an autopsy, it was also discovered that the deceased had black eyes (pupils) a telltale sign of a brain injury.
“We opened up the body and brought out all the organs. We also opened up the skull to bring out the brain. Blood collection was discovered in the skull, just beneath the skin.
“The deceased’s uterus was also brought out and there was no sign of conception. We took samples from the brain in order to determine the cause of death which primarily was respiratory failure caused by trauma to the brain.”
Soyele, who noted that he and his team had conducted over 1,000 autopsies, said Ronke’s autopsy revealed that she had suffered past injuries to her brain.
“We took samples from the brain and discovered old haemorrhage (bleeding) in the brain, which suggests past trauma,” he added.
The matter was adjourned till October 24 for trial.