THE family of an asylum seeker whose death shocked Scotland when it emerged her son was left for four days alone in their family home has called for a fatal accident inquiry to be held.
Mercy Baguma died suddenly while at home in Govan, Glasgow, with her one-year-old son in 2020 and her family are now demanding answers from the state as to how it was possible her son Adriel Nnanna could have been left unsupervised for days as a result.
Her husband Eric Nnanna believes the Home Office has a case to answer but have been able to dodge official scrutiny because a fatal accident inquiry was never conducted to determine the circumstances surrounding her death.
A post-mortem confirmed Baguma died from alcohol poisoning but ruled out a history of alcohol abuse.
Fatal accident inquiries are required by law to be carried out when someone dies in custody or when they die at work. Outwith this, it is for the procurator fiscal to decide whether one should be held.
Nnanna, 32, said: “The legal action was never about money - it was about making Home Office and Mears Group hold their hands up and admit they got things wrong.
“Have these two organisations even made any changes to how they do things since August 2020? They should be telling us if they have so people know they are safe.
“There’s still so many mysteries about what happened around the whole incident and as the Home Office and Mears Group won’t tell us openly I think an FAI is the best and maybe the only way to see, learn and improve things.
“Something needs to happen so things can improve as we can’t have a care system where there are no rules.
“Adriel is now doing well and becoming a big boy and I thank everyone for their help but we are trying to build a future at what is still a difficult time so we ask that our privacy is respected.”
Nnanna has previously insisted Baguma was housed by the Mears Group as a private contractor working on behalf of the Home Office but the company has denied this.
The Home Office has previously pledged to hold its own investigation into the tragedy and the outcome of this is unknown.
A Home Office spokesperson said: “This is a tragic situation and our condolences go to Ms Baguma’s family.
“We have since undertaken a number of significant changes to keep asylum seekers safe, including how we, our contractors and charities spot vulnerable individuals and provide them with wraparound support and appropriate accommodation.”
Kim Leslie, a partner at Digby Brown, the law firm which previously represented the family, added: “What happened to Adriel was utterly devastating and understandably affected the nation because how can we have a care system with gaps so large it leaves a child alone for days after the death of his mother?
“I can only hope the Home Office has now bridged such gaps and equally, I would encourage the [Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service] to conduct a fatal accident inquiry so a tragedy like this never again occurs.”
The Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service was approached for comment.
