The Onidogun of Idogun land in Ose Local Government Area of Ondo State, Oba Moses Ekundayo Bakare, has been confirmed dead.

Information available to journalists revealed that the late monarch collapsed on Wednesday and was rushed to a hospital, where he remained in a coma for 24 hours before he died on Thursday evening.

It would be recalled that a crisis erupted in Idogun in October 2025 when some residents of the community publicly assaulted the monarch in a viral video. The incident led to the monarch’s departure from the town, where he remained away until his death on Thursday.

Confirming the incident, the State Commissioner for Information and Orientation, Mr Idowu Ajanaku, who is an indigene of Idogun, expressed the state government’s condolences to the family of the deceased monarch and the entire Idogun community.

According to him, the Ehares (chiefs) of the community informed him of the monarch’s death.

On behalf of the state government, Ajanaku called on residents of Idogun to maintain peace and order and refrain from violence during this period of mourning.

Confirming the monarch’s death, his son, who identified himself as Victor Olorunmbe, told our correspondent that his father died of cardiac arrest.

Meanwhile, barely a week ago, members of the community celebrated the first anniversary of the monarch’s absence from the town under the theme, “Celebration of the One Year Freedom and Exit of a Tyrant.”

According to the late monarch’s son, the celebration signified a spiritual burial conducted for his father while he was still alive, which eventually manifested in the form of a cardiac arrest.

He said that immediately after his father died, he contacted some elders of the community to inform them of the death on Thursday and seek advice on the next steps to take.

“I don’t know much about the culture of the community concerning burial rites for a king. So, I called some elders to ask about the next step, and they said he must be buried that same day.

“We arranged for a grave to be dug inside the palace, but, surprisingly, as we approached Idogun on Thursday night, members of a group called Omo-Lile had already barricaded the entrance to the community and prevented us from taking his corpse into the town for burial.

“They were violent and armed with weapons. The Divisional Police Officer of Idoani made every possible effort to control the situation, but they overpowered us. He advised us to return to where we were coming from to avert a mob attack.

“The only condition they gave before we could be allowed into the community was that my father must be buried in my grandfather’s compound and not in the palace. They claimed that my father was a political king appointed by politicians. They eventually covered the grave we had dug in the palace built by my father.

“I have petitioned the Commissioner of Police and the Commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs because my father was duly installed and died as a king.

“The Omo-Lile group immediately looted the palace and carted away valuable items belonging to my father, claiming that they were the property of the community.”

He disclosed that the monarch’s remains had been taken to a mortuary in Owo, while the family would decide on the next steps to take.

According to him, Oba Moses Bakare ascended the throne in 2005 and died at the age of 66.