Vivien Vihimga Akpagher, the mother of a deceased 14-year-old boarding student of Premier Academy, Keren-Happuch Aondodoo Akpagher, who was allegedly raped, has filed a lawsuit seeking N10 billion as damages from the school and other defendants.
The suit filed before an Abuja High Court has as respondents the school; its owners, including former Managing Director of Skye Bank, Akinsola Akifemiwa; Chief M.K. Osuma; AAGMR Ltd; Premiere Eye Center Ltd; Christopher Akinsowon; Grace Salami and Nurse Lois Bung.
Keren-Happuch was alleged to have died of an infection after a condom was found in her private parts.
It was believed that the girl was sexually abused in the school before her mother took her to the hospital on June 19, 2021, for treatment.
The girl, however, died two days later in a hospital in the Wuse 2 area of Abuja.
Addressing the press on Monday, the mother of the deceased said she brought the suit against the eight defendants.
She has also prayed the court for “an order restraining the defendants by themselves, their agents and privies from threatening the plaintiff and her allies in respect of this suit, during and after the trial.”
The plaintiff is praying the court for: “A declaration that the negligence of the defendants caused the plaintiff’s daughter’s (Keren –Happuch Aondodoo Akpagher) death on the 22nd day of June 2021.
“A declaration that the acts of the defendants, who owed the Duty of Care to Plaintiff’s daughter, were negligent and this led to her death as a result of rape, sexual abuse and molestation which happened under their care.
“A declaration that the acts of the defendants who instructed the 8th defendant to administer dexamethasone (a steroid) on Keren –Happuch Aondodoo Akpagher exacerbated her underlining illness: “diabetes” and this led to her death.
“A declaration that the defendants’ failure to apprehend the perpetrator or allow the due process of the law to be carried out on time in other to fish out the perpetrator who is within their vicinity has intentionally inflicted the plaintiff with emotional distress, mental distress and nervous breakdown.”
Meanwhile, she prayed the court to award to her the sum of N10 billion as damages against the defendants for the breach of duty of care and negligence which led to the death of her daughter.
She is also demanding N10 million for “emotional, mental, psychological and physical stress on the plaintiff, caused by the painful death of her daughter at the hands of the defendants who owed her duty of care as well as N10 million representing the cost of litigation”.
Akpagher said despite her demand that the police retrieve CCTV footage of the 15th and 16th of June 2021, which she knows will give a hint of how her daughter was sexually abused and the identity of her abuser, the defendants have chosen to obstruct justice by concealing the said footage.
According to her, Keren became critically ill after returning home and was rushed to the hospital on Monday, 21st of June 2021 in a bad state.
She said that was when it was discovered by the medical team at Queen’s Clinic that her daughter had been sexually abused.
The plaintiff said she will rely on the test results, and the hospital reports and records of Queens Clinic, Wuse Abuja, which prove that a condom was left inside her late daughter and that her urine contained dead spermatozoa.
