Dare Babalola
Ifeoluwa Adeniyi, the 19-year-old son of Adeniyi Kayode, Anthony Joshua’s driver, has revealed the details of his conversation with his father about the crash that claimed the lives of friends of the heavyweight boxing champion.
Ifeoluwa told Daily Mail that claims that his father drove recklessly before the crash was false.
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.
Ifeoluwa also disclosed that Joshua initially sat in front but swapped seats at some point during the trip.
“He tried 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.”
