The Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice in Ondo State, Dr Olukayode Ajulo, has called for an end to the payment of autopsy fees by families of suspected homicide victims.
Ajulo made the call in a statement on Tuesday, September 22, in Akure, arguing that families should not bear the cost of determining the cause of death where a person dies under suspicious, unnatural or potentially criminal circumstances.
He said autopsies were essential to homicide investigations and that making them dependent on the financial capacity of grieving families could create evidentiary gaps in criminal prosecutions. According to him, prosecutors could be left without crucial medical evidence needed to establish the cause of death.
Ajulo said the responsibility for investigating suspected crimes should not be transferred to bereaved families, stressing that access to justice should not depend on a family’s ability to pay preliminary investigation costs.
He called for stronger coordination among the police, medical practitioners, judiciary and other relevant institutions to ensure prompt autopsies and proper transmission of medical reports to investigators and prosecutors. He also urged government to provide adequate budgetary provisions for medico-legal examinations required in suspected criminal cases.
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