A grieving father, Henry Airenekhuemen, has called for justice following the death of his son, Mattias, who reportedly drowned in a swimming pool at a hotel in Lagos.
Airenekhuemen said his son attended a pool party on Saturday evening at Signatious Hotel in the Ajao Estate area, where he planned to sell tickets to earn money. He said the family later received a call that Mattias had been rushed to Isolo General Hospital.
“When I got to the hospital, I saw my son’s lifeless body in the back seat of the car that brought him,” Airenekhuemen said on Monday.
He said he was told that Mattias drowned at the hotel’s swimming pool. According to him, a friend who accompanied his son said Mattias had been sitting with him and a woman before the friend briefly left.
About five minutes later, the friend said he tried calling Mattias but got no response. When he returned, the woman reportedly told him Mattias had left, even though his phone was still at the spot and charging.
“It was while searching for him that he found my son’s body in the swimming pool,” Airenekhuemen said.
The father said the family has raised concerns about the circumstances surrounding the death, questioning whether drowning was the actual cause.
“If he truly drowned, why was his stomach flat instead of swollen? And why was there foam coming out of his mouth and nose?” he asked.
He said the incident was reported to the police, who visited the hospital, documented the case and moved the body to the morgue for further investigation.
Police authorities have yet to comment publicly on the incident.
