Family of ex-Nigerian military officer sues Aga Khan hospital for body detention

Bidemi Okorodudu, acting as the legal representative of the estate of the late Air Vice Marshal Terry O. Okorodudu (Ret.), accuses the hospital of unlawfully detaining the body over a disputed medical bill of Ksh.8 million.

Through her lawyers, Bidemi claims that the hospital has continued to hold the body of the deceased as security for the alleged debt, a practice she argued is contrary to Kenyan law and public policy.

“The continued detention of the body infringes the inherent dignity of the deceased as guaranteed under Article 28 of the Constitution of Kenya,” the application reads in part.

The petitioner is seeking several orders, among them an ex parte directive compelling the hospital to immediately and unconditionally release the body, restraining the hospital from interfering with the burial, and allowing the family to transfer the remains for military interment in the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

The family further wants the court to order the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Health, and the Department of Immigration to facilitate the repatriation of the body, noting that Air Vice Marshal Okorodudu was a “distinguished serviceman of the Nigerian Air Force” who is scheduled for a military burial in Nigeria.

They also want the OCS Parklands Police Station to provide assistance where necessary in enforcing any orders of the court.

According to the petitioner, the unlawful detention has caused the family immense emotional distress and risks sparking diplomatic embarrassment between Kenya and Nigeria.

The court has been that even if any sums were owed, the hospital has adequate legal avenues to recover the money, including filing a civil claim or relying on the Foreign Judgments (Reciprocal Enforcement) Act, Cap 43, which allows enforcement of debts between the two countries.

However, Aga Khan University Hospital has opposed the release of his remains without clearing an outstanding medical bill of Ksh. 8 million.

The hospital through its Patients Services Business Department Manager, Jackson Awuor, is accusing the deceased’s son, Bidemi Okorodudu, of being uncooperative, hostile to medical staff, and attempting to evade payment despite signing a guarantee of payment during his father’s admission in July 2025.

Awuor has detailed that the retired military officer was admitted as a high-risk elderly patient requiring specialist attention from multiple medical disciplines due to severe heart failure, kidney complications, pulmonary hypertension, chronic liver disease, and other comorbidities.

He further alleged that the petitioner consistently clashed with doctors, declined recommended treatments, and interfered with medical decisions, behavior that mirrored his conduct at Coptic Hospital, where he had earlier discharged his father against medical advice before transferring him to Aga Khan.

The hospital also has produced consent forms and medical reports showing that risks of certain procedures had been fully explained, including a central venous catheterization that resulted in a complication which was managed. 

"Despite consenting, the petitioner later turned hostile and accused doctors of incompetence," reads court papers.

The dispute escalated when the family began questioning the hospital bills, which had ballooned to over Ksh. 8 million by the time of Okorodudu’s death on September 9, 2025. 

The hospital claims that while the petitioner initially committed to keeping the balance below Ksh. 1 million, he reneged on this promise and has since demanded a waiver of the entire bill, compensation of Ksh. 70 million in general and exemplary damages, and over Ksh. 2 million in funeral expenses.

Awuor argues that the court that allowing the petitioner to collect his father’s remains without settling the debt or offering security would amount to unjust enrichment and violate the hospital’s constitutional right to property. He stressed that the facility, while not profit-driven, incurs huge costs in providing emergency and specialized care, and unpaid bills from foreign patients often cripple operations.

The hospital has dismissed attempts by the petitioner to invoke Nigeria’s foreign judgment enforcement laws, arguing that Nigeria is not listed as a reciprocal country under Kenya’s Foreign Judgment (Reciprocal Enforcement) Act.

In its response, the hospital has asked the court to compel the petitioner to provide an enforceable undertaking for the outstanding bill before the body can be released, insisting that non-payment would prejudice its operations and the rights of other patients.