Gboyega Odubanjo inquest: Coroner says poet's death was accidental

The death of an award-winning poet who went missing at a festival was "accidental", a coroner said.

Gboyega Odubanjo, 27, was last seen at Shambala Festival in Northamptonshire on 26 August 2023. His body was found in a lake on the site five days later.

A pathologist said Mr Odubanjo, from Bromley, south London, had drugs in his system at a level which would interfere "with cognitive and motor function".

Mr Odubanjo's family said they were "heartbroken" by his "tragic loss".

Mr Odubanjo was last spotted at 04:00 BST the day before he was due to perform at Shambala on the Kelmarsh Hall Estate, west of Kettering. He did not arrive for his set on the Sunday.

Det Con Chelsea Noble, from Northamptonshire Police, said his body was discovered in a lake on 31 August.

A toxicology report presented to the court revealed Mr Odubanjo's body was found with traces of alcohol, ketamine and ecstasy (MDMA) in his blood.

Friends said they had arrived at the festival on Friday, 25 August with Mr Odubanjo and gone for drinks and had been dancing.

One of his friends, Zack Harper, said "Yega" was in good spirits after their arrival at the festival and "and seemed very relaxed".

Later he wanted to be alone and walked off.

When Mr Harper found him he seemed to be "in some sort of paranoid state of mind" and said he did not recognise him.

Mr Harper said he was "a little bit concerned" but assumed things would be clearer in the light of day. The next day friends called him but could not get through.

A statement from another friend, Lola Seaton, said his disappearance was reported to the festival's security team on Saturday, but she became "genuinely worried" when he did not arrive for his set on the Sunday.

Northamptonshire coroner Anne Pember found his cause of death was accidental drowning.

'Sharp intellect'

Delivering a statement outside Northampton Coroners' Court, Mr Odubanjo's family said: "Gboyega was inimitable.

"We will cherish his loud laughter, calm measuredness, his sharp intellect and his love, all of which will continue to warm the hearts of his friends, family and writing community."

The family said they were "working with our community to ensure people are safe at festivals".

They added that Mr Odubanjo's debut poetry collection - titled Adam - would be released posthumously, while they have also founded The Gboyega Odubanjo Foundation to support low-income black writers, with £40,000 raised in his memory.

Mr Odubanjo's pamphlet, Aunty Uncle Poems, was a winner of the Poetry Business New Poets prize in 2020. He had also been the recipient of an Eric Gregory award from the Society of Authors and a Michael Marks pamphlet award.

He had been studying for a PhD in creative writing at the University of Hertfordshire and had previously attended the University of East Anglia.

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