The family of the late former Chairman of the Nigerian Exchange Group, Abimbola Ogunbanjo, who was killed in a Southern California helicopter crash in February filed a lawsuit on Wednesday, against the US helicopter company.
According to The PUNCH, relatives of Ogunbanjo in the court filing on Wednesday claimed that the charter company, Orbic Air, improperly flew the helicopter despite a “wintry mix” of snowy and rainy conditions in the Mojave Desert where the crash occurred on Feb. 9, the Press Enterprise reports.
Ogunbanjo’s wife and two children have filed a lawsuit in San Bernardino County Superior Court against Orbic Air and its CEO, Brady Bowers, alleging wrongful death and negligence.
The suit also includes the unidentified successors of Pettingill and Hansen, whom Ogunbanjo’s family holds responsible. Orbic Air did not provide any comment on the matter.
The lawsuit seeks a jury trial for Ogunbanjo’s burial expenses, funeral expenses, and other damages. Robb & Robb, the law firm representing Ogunbanjo’s family, previously represented Vanessa Bryant in her lawsuit following Kobe Bryant’s fatal helicopter crash in 2020.
The former Chief Executive Officer of Access Holdings, Dr Herbert Wigwe, his wife and son were also onboard the ill-fated helicopter.
The Ogunbanjo family stated that the flight should have been grounded because of treacherous weather.
In February, Wigwe, his wife and his son died following a helicopter crash in California near the Nevada border, United States of America.
One of the attorneys who filed the lawsuit, Andrew C. Robb, noted Ogunbanjo’s family is seeking “answers and accountability.”
“Helicopters do not do very well in snow and ice,” Robb told The Associated Press.
“This flight was entirely preventable, and we don’t know why they took off,” He added.
The National Transportation Safety Board is still investigating the cause of the crash.
While a preliminary report released in February detailed the helicopter’s flight path and wreckage, the exact cause remains undetermined. Witnesses reported seeing a fiery crash during a snow and rain storm.
