Anthony Joshua’s Driver Faces Four Criminal Charges After Fatal Expressway Collision
The driver of the Lexus SUV involved in Anthony Joshua’s fatal car crash on Nigeria’s Lagos-Ibadan Expressway has been charged with four criminal offences, including dangerous driving causing death. Adeniyi Mobolaji Kayode, 46, faced the Sagamu Magistrates Court on Friday following the collision that claimed two lives and injured heavyweight boxer Anthony Joshua on December 29.
Driver Charged With Four Counts Following Fatal Crash Involving Anthony Joshua
Kayode stands accused of dangerous driving causing death, reckless and negligent driving, driving without due care and attention resulting in bodily harm and damage to property, and driving without a valid national driver’s licence. The charges fall under Sections 5(1), 6(1), 7(1) and 10(1) of the Federal Highway Act. Ogun State Police Command spokesman Oluseyi Babaseyi confirmed the charges during proceedings at Sagamu Magistrates Court, with the case adjourned until January 20 for trial.
The magistrate granted Kayode bail in the sum of five million Nigerian naira, approximately $3,480 or £2,578, with two sureties required as bail conditions. He remained in custody pending fulfillment of those conditions.
The crash occurred around 11 a.m. local time in Makun, approximately 30 miles from Lagos, on the busy corridor connecting Nigeria’s two largest cities. Joshua and Kayode occupied the Lexus SUV alongside two passengers: Sina Ghami, Joshua’s strength and conditioning coach of over a decade, and Latif Ayodele, his personal trainer. The vehicle collided with a stationary truck parked along the roadside. Ghami and Ayodele were pronounced dead at the scene, while Joshua sustained only minor injuries and was discharged from the hospital on December 31.
Ghami, 36, co-founded Evolve Gym in London and held credentials as a certified sports and exercise rehabilitator specializing in musculoskeletal injuries and corrective exercise. His expertise extended to working with elite athletes across the NFL and NBA. Ayodele, also 36, brought semi-professional football experience to his role as Joshua’s personal trainer and had converted to Islam in 2012, adopting the name Abdul Latif. Just hours before the crash, Joshua posted video footage on Instagram of the two playing table tennis together.
Initial investigations by Nigeria’s Federal Road Safety Corps indicated the Lexus was exceeding the legal speed limit and lost control during an overtaking attempt. Later findings by the Ogun state Traffic Compliance and Enforcement Agency, however, revealed a more specific cause: the vehicle was traveling at excessive speed when the front passenger-side tyre burst, causing the driver to lose control and swerve into the stationary truck.
Joshua, 36, was born in Watford to British-Nigerian parents and holds family roots in Sagamu, the town near the crash site. He had travelled to Nigeria following his sixth-round knockout victory over Jake Paul on December 19 in Miami, intending to spend the holiday period with relatives. Following his hospital discharge, he visited a funeral home in Lagos with his mother to pay final respects to Ghami and Ayodele before flying back to the United Kingdom on January 3.
President Bola Tinubu extended formal condolences to Joshua and the families of the deceased, describing the crash as a tragic loss. Joshua’s promoter, Matchroom Boxing, alongside management company 258 MGT, released a joint statement confirming the deaths of “two close friends and integral members” of the boxer’s team.
