Ifeoluwa Adeniyi, the 19-year-old son of Adeniyi Kayode, Anthony Joshua’s driver, has rejected claims that his father drove recklessly before the crash that claimed the lives of friends of the heavyweight boxing champion.
On December 29, a Lexus SUV conveying Joshua and his team
rammed into a stationary truck along the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway.
Two of Joshua’s close associates — Kevin Latif Ayodele, his
personal trainer, and Sina Ghami, his strength and conditioning coach — died in
the accident.
Adeniyi, who was behind the wheels, was charged with manslaughter by the Ogun state police command.
He was later taken to the Sagamu Correctional Centre to
complete his bail paperwork.
Speaking about the incident, Ifeoluwa said his father was
not speeding at the time of the crash and that the accident was caused by brake
failure.
“Dad is not a fast driver; he was following the speed limit
when the brakes failed. He said he was pushing the pedal, but nothing was
happening,” he said.
He said his father tried to swerve to avoid the stationary
truck but crashed into it.
The driver’s son told Daily Mail that Joshua initially sat
in front but swapped seats at some point during the trip.
“He tries to swerve and avoid the truck parked by the side
of the road but hit it. He’s been driving for Anthony for three years, he’s a
good driver,” the younger Adeniyi added.
“I know that when the journey started in Lagos, Anthony was
sitting in the front by the driver but my dad asked him to sit behind because
he was blocking his view.
“He was taking Anthony to see his family in Sagamu and had
picked them up from the airport and they were only a few minutes from arriving.
“It’s not his fault, if the truck wasn’t parked there
illegally this wouldn’t have happened.”
Olalekan Abiodun, the driver’s lawyer, described the
accident as unfortunate.
He confirmed that Adeniyi has pleaded not guilty and noted
that the journey began in Lagos with Joshua initially seated in front.
However, Adeniyi asked Joshua to swap seats, he said.
According to Abiodun, the trip was to visit Joshua’s family
in Sagamu and the accident occurred just minutes before their destination.
“My client has pleaded not guilty, and what happened was an
accident. I haven’t had a chance to speak with him yet, but I know he says the
brakes didn’t work,” he said.
“I also understand that the journey started in Lagos and
that initially Anthony had got into the front seat, but the driver asked him to
swap seats. He did this because Anthony is a big fellow, and so the driver
couldn’t see the wing mirror properly, which was why he asked him to move to
the seat behind the driver’s seat.
“From what I understand, Latif changed seats with Anthony. I
know that when the journey started in Lagos, Anthony was sitting in the front
by the driver, but my dad asked him to sit behind because he was blocking his
view.
“He was taking Anthony to see his family in Sagamu and had
picked them up from the airport. They were only a few minutes from arriving.”
The lawyer argued that the crash might have been avoided if
the truck had not been parked illegally on the roadside.
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