Synagogue: Coroner’s verdict ‘unreasonable’

The Synagogue Church of All Nations (SCOAN) has described the verdict of the coroner inquest into last year’s building collapse as “one-sided and unreasonable”.

Oyetade Komolafe, the coroner, had accused the church of criminal negligence for the collapse, which killed 116 people, mostly South Africans, in September 2014.

Komolafe had recommended prosecution of the church and the contractors of the building.

But in a statement issued on Thursday, the church rejected the verdict of the coroner.

“The Synagogue Church of All Nations (SCOAN) rejects the verdict of the coroner on the grounds that it is unreasonable, one-sided and biased,” the church said in a statement.

“The church maintains its stand that the incident was as a result of sabotage. The church disagrees most vehemently with the finding that the incident was due to structural failure.

“Evidence was produced to suggest the incident could have been brought about by external forces such as controlled demolition or an explosion. No matter how long a lie is sustained, the truth will someday prevail.”