His death came barely 24 hours after another actor, Quadri Oyebamiji, aka Sisi Quadri, passed away in Osun State.

Paying tributes to the late Okafor, the president of the Actors Guild of Nigeria, Emeka Rollas, wrote on his Instagram, “Sad day for the Actors Guild of Nigeria. Kate Henshaw lost her mother earlier today, and Mr Ibu suffered cardiac arrest, according to his manager of 24 years, Don Nwuzor. I announce with a deep sense of grief that Mr Ibu did not make it. May his soul rest in peace.”

On her part, an actress, Mercy Johnson-Okojie, wrote, “It is well…rest well, sir.”

Peter, a singer and member of the pop group, P-Square, wrote, “Rest well, Mr Ibu. We will definitely miss you, brother.”

Recall that had battled ill health for some time, leading to the amputation of his legs. This was after he had appealed to his fans and members of the public to prayer for him and render financial assistance to cover his medical bills.

However, as the actor lay on his hospital bed, members of his family were in a fierce battle, During this period, his family seemed to have been in a fierce battle, as they accused one another of wanting to embezzle the money raised by members of the public.

It was also alleged that the actor was involved in an affair with his adopted daughter, Chioma (Jasmine); though both parties denied the allegations.

Indeed, the actor’s last years had been tumultuous. On different occasions, he claimed to have survived several poison attempts. According to him, three attempts were made on his life but he survived them all.

Actors who have passed on this year include Sisi Quadri and Deji Akinremi, aka Olofa Ina.

The Force, through its Force Criminal Investigation and Intelligence Department, Alagbon, in Ikoyi, Lagos State, said the duo of Onyeabuchi Okafor and Jasmine Okekeagwu, allegedly conspired to commit the crime.

The family of the ailing thespian revealed in October 2023 that the actor had undergone five surgeries, seeking further treatment abroad while appreciating donations from the actor’s fans.

However, the FCID, in a statement signed by its Public Relations Officer, Mayegun Amina, on Thursday, said the arrest followed a petition received from Diamond Waves Law on behalf of the actor’s wife, Stella Okafor, alleging that two sons of Mr. Ibu conspired with his adopted daughter, Jasmine, to defraud their father.

The Force disclosed that investigations showed that the thespian’s phone was hacked by the suspects to carry out the crime.

The statement read, “On September 6, 2023, a petition was received from Diamond Waves Law on behalf of Stella Maris Chinyere Okafor, wherein one Onyeabuchi Daniel Okafor and Valentine Okafor, both of whom are sons of Mr. John Ikechukwu Okafor (Alias Ibu) and Jasmine Chioma Okekeagwu, were alleged to have conspired to defraud Mr. Ibu while being on sick bed.

“Investigation into the case established that as part of efforts to fund his medical bills, Mr. Ibu launched a public fund-raising initiative and attracted donations from his fans, entertainment industry players, and other well-spirited members of the public into a bank account, which he publicised and dedicated for the purpose.

Mr. Ibu’s wife, Mrs. Stella Maris Chinyere Okafor, was initially managing the funds to defray the medical bills of Mr. Ibu and sustain the family. However, along the line, the duo of Onyeabuchi Daniel Okafor and Jasmine Chioma Okekeagwu manipulated Mrs. Stella Maris Chinyere Okafor, took possession of Mr. Ibu’s phone, and hacked into the banking details therein.”

The police stated that the duo allegedly reinstalled the banking app on the phone belonging to the actor and transferred the sum of N55m from the donations for the actor’s medical bill with the intention of using the proceeds to travel abroad.

However, the Force also claimed that it had recovered a sum of N55m allegedly stolen from the actor’s account.

It stated, “They thereafter re-installed the mobile banking applications of Mr. Ibu on the phone of Onyeabuchi Daniel Okafor preparatory to the perfection of their preconceived fraudulent plans and wiped off the banking applications originally installed on Mr. Ibu’s phone, thereby taking direct and full charge of the banking activities of Mr. Ibu in relation to the funds being donated by members of the public in support of his medicals.

“Through this fraudulent act, Onyeabuchi Okafor and Jasmine Okekeagwu started transferring funds from Mr. Ibu’s public fundraising account to Onyeabuchi Daniel Okafor’s personal bank, with forensic analysis of their illicit financial dealing establishing that a total of fifty-five million naira (N55m) had been successfully and criminally transferred prior to their arrest and investigation.

“Investigation also unearthed text messages via WhatsApp between Jasmine and Daniel Okafor, detailing stage-by-stage how they conspired and hatched their criminal plans. It was also established that the two suspects, Jasmine Chioma Okekeagwu and Onyeabuchi Daniel Okafor, had a sham marriage at the Ikoyi Marriage Registry with plans to escape from the country to the UK, where they intended to settle with their proceeds of crime. They already applied for a UK visa in furtherance of this plan prior to their arrest,” the statement added.

The police said the duo had both been charged at the Chief Magistrate Court 1, Yaba, in Charge No. A/06/2024 for conspiracy and stealing.

The statement added, “During investigation, the stolen fifty-five million naira (N55m) was traced to the bank account of Onyeabuchi Daniel Okafor, wherein it was discovered that they had squandered a total of five million naira (N5m) on questionable transactions, while the balance total of fifty million (N50m) has been recovered from him.

“On the strength of evidence, Onyeabuchi Daniel Okafor and Jasmine Chioma Okekeagwu have been charged to the Chief Magistrate Court 1, Yaba, in Charge No. A/06/2024 for conspiracy and stealing.

“They were granted bail in the sum of N15m with two sureties in like sum, while the case was adjourned to March 11, 2024. Meanwhile, the case file has been forwarded to the Office of Director of Public Prosecutions for legal advice.”

The Ibu family had reportedly engaged in a feud as the thespian’s wife alleged that his adopted daughter, Jazmine, had hijacked the money donated by good-willing Nigerians to the actor.

In a lengthy post, the actor’s wife wrote in part, “Recently, there have been some malicious lies being peddled against me on social media as masterminded by Jazmine Chioma Okeke, who wants to make me an outsider in my own home, but God forbid. I will address Jazmine’s excessive interference in my family affairs and other related matters when the time is right. For now, my husband’s health is most important to me.

He said the amputation became necessary because of an infection of the arteries at the ankle that was not detected early enough.

The actor has had seven successful surgeries, including an amputation of one of hi’s legs.

However, speaking with our correspondent in a phone interview on Thursday, Chochoo confirmed that the actor was responding to treatment.

The Guild released a statement on Friday, responding to netizens who called on the association to come to the aid of its ailing member.

In the statement delivered by the Guild’s Director of Communications, Kate Henshaw, it was disclosed that the association had rendered help to Okafor even before his condition became public knowledge.

“We are compelled to make this public statement in reaction to the vituperations of some netizens over the health of one of our respected and esteemed members, John Okafor, popularly known as Mr Ibu.

We are not here to join issues with anybody, but we want to set the records straight over the public outcry that the guild and his colleagues have abandoned him at his point of need. The guild has never abandoned any of its members in need, especially with health interventions. We have been at the forefront of providing necessary support to Mr Ibu even before his health conditions were ever made public, and this has been done with the full knowledge of his family members,” she said in the video shared via AGN’s Instagram page.

Henshaw also explained that the Guild does not publicise help rendered to its members as it is against the association’s “modus operandi”.

However, in a video making rounds on the internet on Saturday, Mr Ibu’s wife disputed the Guild’s statement, claiming that no help was rendered to her husband.

According to Stella, she had tried several times to contact the Guild’s president, Emeka Rollas, but he neither picked up her calls nor replied to her texts.

“I’m not happy at all,” she said in the video “Look at the situation of things now and the AGN people are coming online to say they are supporting my husband from the beginning. Why would they come out to say they are supporting him when they are not? They have not done anything.

“I contacted Emeka Rollas, I sent him a message which he read and did not reply. The message is still there, I called him and he did not answer my calls. So why would they come out and be blabbing? To come and say what they did not do. What kind of thing is this?”

Mr Ibu shared a video via his Instagram page on Wednesday, seeking financial aid from Nigerians to help him treat “a strange and dangerous illness.”

In the clip, the 62-year-old actor revealed that the unnamed ailment was severe and doctors had recommended the amputation of his legs if the situation gets worse.

He said, “As I speak to you, I am still lying down in the hospital; the medical director of this hospital said that the best solution is, in case his new idea didn’t work, the best idea is to cut off my leg.

“Just see me, if they cut off my leg, where do I go from here? Please pray for me, talk to God Almighty, and I don’t want my legs to be cut off. Thank you so much. God bless you.”