Mohbad’s Parents Testify In Court, Reveal NDLEA, Naira Marley Roles Before Son’s Death

Parents of late singer, Ilerioluwa ‘Mohbad’ Aloba, have again implicated the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) and musician, Azeez Fashola (Naira Marley), in the controversy involving their son’s death.

They testified on Wednesday before a Lagos Coroner’s Court seeking to unravel the circumstances surrounding the demise of their son.

Mohbad’s parents gave their account of the events that transpired prior to the late singer’s death.

They revealed how Naira Marley, owner of the Marlian Record label to which Mohbad was signed, and the NDLEA allegedly mistreated their son before he died.

Mohbad’s father, Joseph Aloba, told the court that their son stopped attending shows for six months due to the incessant physical abuse, harassment, and intimidation inflicted upon him by his former label boss, Naira Marley, and his associate, Sammy Larry.

Aloba said, “Mohbad was scared of going out for six months. He said he did not know if the substance he drank at the NDLEA would appear at the airport.”

The father recalled a day Mohbad sustained injuries from alleged attacks by Naira Marley and his boys, saying his late son asserted that such attacks had become a norm.

While giving her account, the singer’s mother, Abosede, said, “My son told us that there was a show that Naira Marley forced him to attend which he declined because it was Sammy Larry who was the organiser of that show.

“Whenever Mohbad was with me, he was always full of fear; he said it was Naira Marley who collected all the money for the shows he performed because the three-year contract that he signed with him had not elapsed.

“He always mentioned Naira Marley and Sammy Larry, and he was always shaking. I begged him several times to allow me to speak with them, but he refused, saying he didn’t want them to kill me.

“The last time he travelled for a show, after he came back, he mentioned to me that Naira Marley came to attack him, he reported the case to the police but I don’t know if the police invited Naira Marley,” the mother said.

According to her, she learnt of her son’s musical pursuits when she reconnected with Mohbad in 2019, during a reunion.

She had left him with his father when he was just three years old, leading to a prolonged separation.

Abosede revealed that he was her second child, and he had two other siblings.

When she and the singer’s father parted ways, Abosede said she could only take the youngest child with her.

Abosede recalled cautioning that Mohbad did not toe the line she got in a vision when she learnt that he had become a musician.

“I told him that wasn’t the prophecy I got when I was pregnant with him. You were supposed to be a pastor, I told him but he played with me and then left,” she recalled.

“The following day, I got a call again that the deceased had been hospitalised. By the time I got there, they said he had been discharged and he was ok healthwise.

“After he left that night, somebody came to me and showed me a video that was circulating online that they were beating him and he was crying and said that Naira Marley wanted to kill him.

“Mohbad told me on the third day that he was inside the studio when he got a call that something was happening at Azeez Fashola (Naira Marley) house that the NDLEA came to raid his house,” she said.

She continued, “The deceased followed the NDLEA to their office and he asked why they took his friends away. He became thirsty due to the argument between him and the NDLEA, then he was given water, he later discovered that he was not feeling ok again after drinking the water.

“I asked him why he was shouting on the Internet, he said Naira Marley wanted to kill him. I asked him why Naira Marley wanted to kill him and he said I shouldn’t worry, that I cannot understand.

“I and one Iya Lode went to Naira Marley’s house and on seeing Naira Marley, he explained that the deceased spoiled his name. I and his father apologised to him, but he still wrote a statement that he (Naira Marley) wanted to kill him.

“I was at the deceased’s house on Saturday when the deceased told me that he had a show on Sunday, September 10, 2023, at Ikorodu but the following Tuesday I received a call that the deceased was dead.”

After her testimony, she revealed that her son had explicitly cautioned her against sharing the information she had revealed in court, expressing fear for her safety, as he believed that disclosing such details could jeopardize her life.

Earlier, the late singer’s father, Joseph Aloba, disclosed to the coroner’s inquest held in Ikorodu that they conducted a swift burial for Mohbad the following day due to the mortuary’s refusal to accept the deceased.