What began with grief and calls for justice has stretched into two years of court battles, family feuds, online debates, and endless speculations.
From pathologists’ testimonies and Naira Marley’s denials, to family clashes and now a court-ordered DNA test on Mohbad’s son, the story has evolved into a complex saga that keeps unfolding in the public eye.
Here’s a rundown of the major developments from 2023 to 2025.
What happened to Mohbad?
According to the police in 2023, the singer was administered injections by an auxiliary nurse named Feyisayo Ogedengbe.
The injections consist of tetanus toxoid, paracetamol, and an antibiotic known as Cetrazone. triggered an immediate reaction, including vomiting, goosebumps, and convulsions, after which he passed.
He was then rushed to Perez Medcare Hospital for medical attention, but was pronounced dead on arrival. According to a statement by the medical facility, he did not die in their hospital, and all efforts at resuscitation failed.
The hasty burial
Mohbad was buried the very next day in the Ikorodu area of Lagos State by his family. The early burial confused the singer’s fans and Nigerians at large, given that he was not a Muslim.
However, Mohbad’s father, Joseph Aloba, spoke up, stressing that he was quickly buried because he was young. He also noted that the land on which he was buried was the only property that he knew his son owned.
Shortly after his passing, Nigerians began to clamour for an investigation into his death due to suspicions surrounding it. According to people around Mohbad, he was hale and hearty and even performed at a concert two days before his sudden passing. This then 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 Nigerian police force swung into action and launched an official investigation. His body was exhumed from where it was buried in Ikorodu, and an autopsy was conducted.
Naira Marley and Sam Larry
Between 2020 and 2022, Mohbad was signed to Naira Marley’s Marlian Records, 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 showing the assault and harassment he suffered at the hands of music promoter Sam Larry, a close friend of Naira Marley.
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, who called for Marley and Larry’s immediate arrest. But at the time, both parties were out of the country and pleaded their innocence because neither of them was in Nigeria when the singer passed away.
Upon invitation by the police, both suspects returned to Nigeria to assist with the investigations and were remanded for 21 days in October 2024.
Fast forward to November, they were granted ₦20 million bail by the Magistrate’s Court in Yaba; however, they were ‘cancelled by the public’ and struggled to recover after that.
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.
In many states across the country, fans gathered en masse to hold a candlelight procession in honour of the late musicians.
Lagos was at the heart of the tribute events with a candlelight procession and memorial concert on September 21, 2023.
The memorial concert took place at Muri Okunola Park and attracted thousands of fans. Also in attendance were several celebrities, including Falz, Chike, and Davido.
People gather to protest for justice over death of late Nigerian singer, Mohbad, in Lekki, Lagos, Nigeria September 21, 2023. REUTERS/Seun Sanni
People gather to protest for justice over death of late Nigerian singer, Mohbad, in Lekki, Lagos.
Two years since Mohbad’s death, here’s all that has happened so far
