Nollywood actress and podcaster, Abiola Adebayo, has disclosed that Adenike Adewodun, a young woman who allegedly committed suicide after admitting on a podcast to engaging in sexual activities with dogs, had actually faked her death. Adewodun’s confession was attributed to trauma-induced addiction, but the actress revealed that the death was staged to evade public backlash and legal consequences.
Adebayo shared this revelation in a statement on her Instagram page on Thursday, titled “Miss Adenike Adewodun’s ‘Fake Death’ Antics.” She explained that Adewodun had initially reached out for help, but panicked and faked her death after receiving an offer for therapy.
“The case of Miss Adenike, while tragic, is a learning curve for us,” Adebayo wrote. “She sent a message and was asked to come, and we offered to get her therapy and all, but she freaked out and in a very devilish and ungodly manner faked her death.”
Adebayo further detailed the emotional toll the fake death took on her and her team. Initially, they attempted to offer condolences and struggled to pen a condolence letter due to the emotional and mental disturbance caused by the news. However, inconsistencies in the stories surrounding her death led to an investigation, revealing that Adewodun was alive.
“We noticed some discrepancies in what her so-called ‘sister’ was telling us and what her friend was saying,” Adebayo stated. “We dispatched the director of the show on a fact-finding mission. He spoke with the friend and traced the hospital where she was supposed to have been treated, only to be told that she didn’t die.”
Following this discovery, Adebayo reported the matter to the Nigeria Police Force. Both Adewodun and her friend, who had announced her death, were arrested. During interrogation, Adewodun admitted to faking her death due to the backlash she received after the podcast aired.
“A petition was written by our attorney to the police, and promptly, the police investigated and arrested both Nike and her friend,” the statement continued. “Nike admitted that she was the one who approached me for the interview and said she freaked out because people recognized her. She felt that if she lied about being dead, I would remove the video.”
In June, Adebayo had tearfully announced that Adewodun had taken her own life. Reflecting on the incident, she expressed deep sorrow and a sense of failure. “For the first time in my life, I feel like a failure. Nike died. The lady I just interviewed who said she slept with dogs committed suicide. People heard her story. They abused me. They said we formulated the story that they were not real. I gave her a listening ear, but she didn’t tell me she was going to die,” Adebayo said.
The revelation of the staged death underscores the importance of mental health awareness and the need for compassionate responses to those in distress.
