Adedamola Joshua, an uncle to the heavyweight boxing champion Anthony Joshua, has expressed the family’s deep distress following the tragic accident that claimed the lives of the boxer’s two friends. He criticized the behavior of onlookers at the scene, revealing that instead of offering help, some bystanders recorded videos and even stole from the victims.
The Family’s Shock
Adedamola revealed that the family did not initially learn of the crash through social media. Instead, the devastating news came via a phone call from a retired police officer, plunging the family into confusion and grief.
He recounted:
“Well, some of us are not really used to social media, so we didn’t get to hear of it on time. But around 1 pm, one of my church members, a retired Deputy Inspector General of Police, called to inform me of the accident and it was like I had never in my life heard that people were involved in an accident.
“How can Anthony Joshua be involved in an accident? It sounded so impossible, but it actually happened; it is unfortunate,”
A Visit Cut Short
The uncle clarified that Joshua’s trip was a routine family visit during the festive season, not a public appearance. He noted that the boxer had arrived in Nigeria only six hours prior to the crash and had chosen to prioritize visiting his family in Sagamu over meeting dignitaries.
He stated:
“It has really left us in shock because this is not the first, the second, or the third time he has been coming home, so what happened? Why now?
“He just arrived in the country six hours ago on that day, and was eager to see his family in Sagamu, only for things to go the way they went,”
“He could have decided to say that he wanted to spend some time with the Governor of Lagos State, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, or other influential Nigerians, but he said that he wanted to be with his family in Sagamu. It is really painful that such an incident happened,”
System Failure and Theft
Adedamola expressed anger at the poor emergency response, noting how distressing it was to see an injured Joshua walking across the road instead of being on a stretcher. He compared the situation to standards abroad, where air ambulances would have been deployed.
He also condemned the insensitive actions of the crowd, confirming that the boxer’s phone was stolen amidst the chaos.
He lamented:
“I want to condemn the lackadaisical attitude of our government towards anything emergency. To see Joshua crossing the median after the accident when he was supposed to be on a stretcher was distressing,”
“If it had been abroad, a helicopter would have arrived at the scene within five minutes for the evacuation of the victims of the accident.”
“It is not enough to have the officials of the Federal Road Safety Corps checking vehicle documents; let there be ambulances too, stationed along this road,”
“Some Nigerians act badly at accident scenes. When they are supposed to help, you will see them bringing out their phones to make videos and even steal from the victims. That is not right,”