The result of the autopsy conducted on the body of the late singer, Ilerioluwa Aloba, aka Mohbad, is said to have been unable to ascertain the cause of his death.
A Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Wahab Shittu, disclosed this while addressing the press at the coroner’s inquest held in Lagos State on Wednesday.
According to him, the pathologist in charge of the autopsy told the coroner that the deceased’s body had decomposed by the time the test was conducted.
He said, “According to him (pathologist), the cause of death cannot be determined because by the time they conducted the test, the body had decomposed and that it is not possible for them to determine the cause of death. So, in summary, he is saying the cause of death cannot be ascertained. And when you say the cause of death cannot be ascertained, it means it is suspicious, it is not clear. No particular reason”.
According to Shittu, the pathologist further stated that the late singer might have died due to a reaction to certain drugs administered to him before he died.
“He went further to say that he does not know whether it is those drugs that led to the death”, he added.
The senior counsel urged the public not to react sharply to the development, noting that the pathologist who gave the report was an expert.
He also revealed that he had yet to see the full report, adding that the coroner had advised that an application be made to access the document.
Shittu further stated that a date had been fixed to cross-examine the pathologist on the outcome of the autopsy.
He said, “Don’t react until you have seen the full report. As I speak to you, I have not seen the full report. The court has advised that we should apply for the full report. If somebody says this is the final verdict. He must have reasons why he said so. So, look at not only the final verdict but look, also, at the reasons he gave before arriving at the final verdict.
“What is important is that this pathologist has given his evidence today and we have taken a day to cross-examine and ask him questions on the report. Until those questions are asked, we cannot say this is the outcome”.
Mohbad, a former record label signee of Marlian Music owned by Naira Marley, died on 12 September at the age of 27, with the circumstances surrounding his death sparking controversy on social media.
The Lagos State Police Command inaugurated a 13-man special investigation team to probe the death on 18 September 2023.
His death also led to the arrest of Naira Marley and controversial Lagos socialite, Balogun Eletu, aka Sam Larry, amongst others.
His corpse was exhumed on 21 September 2023, for an autopsy to unravel the cause of his death.
The state Police Public Relations Officer, Benjamin Hundeyin, tweeted in September 2023 that an autopsy had been concluded and the police were “awaiting results”.
An earlier report in April revealed that the toxicology test carried out to determine the cause of the music star’s death had been concluded.
The result was sent to the pathologist who carried out the autopsy to analyse and interpret it.
