Healer's death was from pneumonia, not an attempt to silence him | Fact check

Nate Trela, USA TODAY
·4 min read

The claim: Alfredo ‘Dr. Sebi’ Bowman was killed for challenging Western medicine

A May 19 Facebook video (direct link, archive link) begins with an image of Alfredo "Dr. Sebi" Bowman next to an image of burdock roots.

"Burdock contains over 92 out of 102 minerals that the body needs," reads on-screen text in the video. "Dr. Sebi tried to show it to the world but they threw him in prison and he d!ed (sic)."

Additional on-screen text reads, “Did you know? They k!lled (sic) him for revealing the truth."

The video was shared more than 20,000 times in a week.

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Our rating: False

Bowman died of complications from pneumonia while in police custody on money laundering charges. There is no credible evidence of foul play, and family members have said they do not believe he was killed.

Claim ties death to promotion of herbal remedy

Bowman, a self-proclaimed healer with a long list of celebrity clients, was arrested in May 2016 at Juan Manuel Gálvez International Airport in Honduras on money laundering charges after trying to enter the country with $37,000 in cash he could not account for. He was initially released with a court date but re-arrested days later and remained in prison as he developed pneumonia. He died Aug. 6, 2016, of the illness, according to the Associated Press.

In the wake of his death, conspiracy theories emerged suggesting that he was killed for challenging Western medicine and the pharmaceutical industry. The claims extended to the murder of rapper Nipsey Hussle, who was working on a documentary about Bowman.

But there is no credible evidence of his death being the result of a conspiracy.

Three years after his death, his son, Alfredo “Asami” Bowman Jr., daughter, Kellie Bowman and grandson, Izeah Bowman, addressed the claims in an interview with The Breakfast Club, a morning radio program.

"It wasn't anything government, it wasn’t no government foul play,” Izeah Bowman said. “If your dad or grandfather (goes) to a prison in a third-world country where there’s not hot showers and hot meals and a television, then it's a possibility that he can die as well.”

Izeah Bowman also said that an uncle had almost died in the same prison in Honduras.

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The Facebook video specifically ties Alfredo Bowman's death to his endorsement of burdock root, the plant pictured in the video. The root has been used for medical purposes for centuries and is recognized as high in antioxidants and fiber while also serving as a diarrhetic.

The purported healer, who had no formal medical training, claimed an alkaline diet and a slew of natural and herbal treatments and supplements could improve health and cure conditions including HIV/AIDS and cancer. His celebrity clients reportedly included actors Eddie Murphy and Steven Seagal, and musicians Michael Jackson and Lisa “Left Eye” Lopes. He is considered a significant figure in the growth of holistic medicine in the U.S.

However, he also faced skepticism from medical professionals and legal challenges to his work, including litigation in New York that forced him to stop making disease-specific claims about his medical treatments after being sued for consumer fraud by New York state.

USA TODAY has previously debunked a claim from Alfredo Bowman that drinking urine could help cure blindness. Medical experts said there was no basis to the idea, and it actually carried health risks.

USA TODAY reached out to the social media user who shared the claim for comment but did not immediately receive a response.

PolitiFact also debunked the claim.

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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Death of herbalist 'Dr. Sebi' was from illness | Fact check