A Kenyan High Court has directed a hospital to release the body of a retired Nigerian military officer, Air Vice Marshal Terry Okorodudu, who died during his treatment, to his family for burial.
The presiding judge, Lawrence Mugambi, directed the Aga Khan University Hospital in Nairobi to release Okorodudu’s body following his death on September 9.
The judge further directed the son of the deceased, Bidemi Okorodudu, to deposit his international passport with the court and to remain in the country pending the determination of the disputed bill of 9.8 million Kenyan Shillings (about N111.3 million).
The court held alternatively that the son of the deceased could deposit the sum in the court as a condition for the release of the corpse.
The court noted the concern of the hospital that Bidemi, being a Nigerian, could leave the jurisdiction of the court, ‘that may be found due, even if the hospital were to recover civil remedies because of extra-territorial jurisdiction.’
The judge further noted that even as the family insisted on the right of the body to be released, the hospital also deserved protection to ensure the right to demand its rightful dues is protected.
According to the Daily Nation, Justice Mugambi said AVM Okorodudu, who was admitted to the hospital on July 25, 2025, had full knowledge that the Aga Khan is a private hospital where he would be required to settle the bills. The judge said the hospital performed its part.
Mr Bidemi accused the hospital of unlawfully detaining the remains of the retired serviceman over an outstanding bill of Sh9.8m, arguing that holding a body as security for a debt is unlawful, unconstitutional, and against public policy.
He said in an affidavit that the family was undergoing immense anguish, humiliation and trauma, which cannot be adequately compensated by damages, if the body was not urgently released for interment.
Mr Bidemi said his father was a distinguished serviceman of the Nigerian Air Force and that arrangements have been made for his military burial by the Nigerian government.
‘The continued unlawful detention of his body risks causing serious diplomatic embarrassment to both Kenya and Nigeria,’ he said.
The Nigerian said even if any sums were due, the hospital had adequate legal avenues to recover them under relevant laws, like the Foreign Judgments (reciprocal enforcement) Act provides a framework for the reciprocal enforcement of debts and judgments between Kenya and Nigeria.
On the standard of care for the deceased former officer, the family also disputed the accuracy of the bill, raising issues with the standard of care offered to the retired military man, which they said led to complications, the high hospital bill and eventually his demise.
The family sought immediate and unconditional release of the body, an injunction restraining the hospital from interfering with the burial, and orders to allow the repatriation of the remains to Nigeria for a military funeral.
The Aga Khan University Hospital said the son executed a guarantee of payment for healthcare services to be rendered to his father, and that the case was an attempt to run away from honouring the guarantee.
The hospital’s Patient Services Business Department Manager, Jackson Awuor, said Mr Okorodudu required highly specialised treatment for multiple complications when he was admitted, adding that he was a high-risk, elderly patient whose treatment required a multi-disciplinary team of doctors comprising specialists from cardiology, critical care, pain management and nursing, among others.
According to the hospital, the failure to pay bills risked paralysing its operations, with the net effect of depriving other needy patients of treatment and care.
The hospital presented signed consent forms and medical reports to counter allegations of negligence, noting that the petitioner had consented to the risky procedures but later accused doctors of negligence.