Five things that happened after Mohbad died

Mohbad was a talented and charismatic singer who left a lasting impact on the Nigerian music scene. His fans and the Nigerian people will continue to mourn his loss and celebrate his life.

Mohbad’s story has also highlighted the importance of mental health awareness and the need to protect artists from exploitation in the month since his death. His legacy will remind the music industry to treat its artists with respect and dignity.

Mohbad was a rising star in the Nigerian music scene before his untimely death at 24. In the month since his passing, his fans and the Nigerian people have mourned his loss and celebrated his life.

Here are five things that have happened since Mohbad died.

The Burial

Mohbad was buried the day after he died in the Ikorodu area of Lagos State. The early burial confused his fans and Nigerians because he was not a Muslim. However, his father, Joseph Aloba, explained that he was quickly buried because he was young and because the land on which he was buried was the only property he knew his son owned.

Read also Mohbad: Artists pour out their hearts in over 50 tribute songs

Call for Investigations and an Autopsy

Shortly after his passing, Nigerians began to clamour for an investigation into his death. According to people around Mohbad, he had performed at a concert two days before his passing and there was nothing wrong with him. This raised the question in everyone’s mind, “What happened to Mohbad?”

A social media campaign by Nigerians began demanding that an autopsy be conducted on Mohbad to determine the cause of his death. Petitions were written to the Governor of Lagos, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, and to the state’s head coroner as well.

The Nigeria police force swung into action and launched an official investigation into his passing, and dug up his body from the grave in Ikorodu for an autopsy.

Naira Marley and Sam Larry

Between 2020 and 2022, Mohbad was signed to Naira Marley’s record label, under which he released some of his biggest hit songs. Before his death, he was involved in a legal battle with the record label to recover some of his royalties. Following his passing, videos surfaced online of assault and harassment he suffered at the hands of music promoter Sam Larry and the record label. The most damning video was one made by Mohbad himself crying that Naira Marley be held responsible if anything happened to him.

The reemergence of the videos on social media after his death enraged Nigerians to call for Marley and Larry’s immediate arrest. But at the time, both parties were out of the country and claimed innocence because neither of them were in Nigeria when the singer passed away.

Upon invitation by the police, both suspects returned to Nigeria to assist with the ongoing investigations.

A Befitting Send-Forth

Nigerians did not view the hasty burial in Ikorodu as befitting for the much-loved singer, therefore his management arranged a candlelight procession and tribute concert in his honour. The September 21 procession started at the Lekki Phase One gate and went down to the famous Muri Okunola Park in Victoria Island, where the tribute concert also occurred. Hundreds of devoted fans attended the event to support the late singer, and celebrities like Falz and Davido were in attendance.

Read also The sad, and not so sad, lyrics of MohBad

The Investigations

The police disclosed that 26 people, including members of Mohbad’s family, had been questioned in connection to his death.

Ogendengbe, the nurse administering the injections to the singer at his residence, has been named the prime suspect but is yet to be arraigned. Mohbad’s friend, Ayobami Sadiq, aka Spending, who invited Ogendengbe to treat the singer in his Lekki home has also been named a suspect, alongside another friend, Primeboy, who reportedly had a physical altercation with him a day before his death.

Due to evidence linking them with cyberbullying, physical abuse, a threat to life, and assault against Mohbad, Marley and Larry are also considered suspects and have been remanded to police custody for 21 days.