The ongoing DNA test dispute took a fresh turn in March 2026 after the legal team of late singer Ilerioluwa Aloba, popularly known as Mohbad, raised concerns about the ability of two laboratories approved for the paternity examination to analyse tissue from his embalmed remains.

The development has attracted renewed public attention, with social media commentator VeryDarkMan also drawing attention to the laboratory correspondence and questioning how the court-ordered process can proceed if the facilities involved do not provide the required specialised testing.

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Mohbad died in September 2023 at the age of 27, leaving behind unresolved questions surrounding his death as well as legal disputes involving his estate, royalties and the paternity of his son, Liam Aloba.

Liam was born in April 2023, months before Mohbad’s death. The paternity dispute was brought before a Lagos State Magistrate’s Court in Ikorodu after Mohbad’s father, Joseph Aloba, sought a DNA examination to establish whether Liam was the late singer’s biological child.

On February 24, 2026, Magistrate B.A. Sonuga directed that the DNA examination be conducted through three laboratories agreed upon through a process involving the parties and the court.

The facilities named were DNA Diagnostics Centre in Fairfield, Ohio, in the United States, proposed by Joseph Aloba; Alpha Bio Labs in Warrington, United Kingdom, proposed by Mohbad’s widow, Wunmi Aloba; and Advanced Histopathology Laboratory Limited in London, selected by the court through its Social Welfare Officer.

The court also directed that the collection and transmission of samples be supervised by the Social Welfare Officer in the presence of the parties and their lawyers.

However, the controversy centres on Alpha Bio Labs and Advanced Histopathology Laboratory Limited. According to a statement by Joseph Aloba’s lawyer, Oladayo Ogungbe, both laboratories indicated that they do not conduct post-mortem DNA testing involving tissue extracted from embalmed bodies.

Alpha Bio Labs was nominated by Wunmi Aloba, while Advanced Histopathology Laboratory Limited was selected by the court through the Social Welfare Officer.

Before sample collection commenced, representatives of Joseph Aloba made preliminary inquiries to verify the technical competence of the laboratories, according to the family’s lawyer, Oladayo Ogungbe.

Ogungbe said Alpha Bio Labs and Advanced Histopathology Laboratory Limited indicated that they do not conduct post-mortem DNA testing involving tissue extracted from embalmed bodies.

“Prior to the commencement of sample collection, representatives of the applicant made inquiries to ascertain whether the listed laboratories possessed the technical capacity to conduct post-mortem DNA analysis involving tissue extraction from embalmed remains,” Ogungbe said.

The lawyer said the responses were formally presented to the court through an affidavit of facts.

The clarification was also intended to address suggestions that Joseph Aloba had deliberately nominated laboratories incapable of conducting the examination.

Ogungbe rejected that suggestion, stressing that only one of the three facilities had been proposed by Aloba’s side.

“It is incorrect and misleading to suggest that Mr Joseph Aloba deliberately selected laboratories lacking the competence to conduct tissue-based DNA testing,” the lawyer said.

The laboratory issue has since added another complication to an already protracted family dispute.

For a meaningful result to be obtained from Mohbad’s remains, the legal teams must establish a testing facility with the appropriate forensic capability and agree on a process that can withstand scrutiny.

Joseph Aloba has publicly expressed frustration over the development.

In a video reported by Premium Times, he alleged that the laboratories presented for the exercise were unsuitable and called on the Lagos State Government to ensure that the process was properly conducted. Those claims remain his allegations and have not been established as findings of the court.

Aloba also said the DNA examination was important to resolving the paternity question and to his efforts to finally bury his son.

The latest development does not itself establish that the DNA test cannot be conducted.

Rather, it highlights a dispute over whether two of the facilities initially approved can carry out the specific post-mortem procedure required in Mohbad’s case.

The court will ultimately determine how the process should proceed, including whether alternative laboratories or a revised testing arrangement should be considered.

For now, the Mohbad DNA test remains unresolved, while the Aloba family continues to seek what it describes as a transparent and scientifically credible examination.

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The controversy has also renewed attention on the importance of forensic expertise when DNA testing involves preserved human remains, particularly in a case that has attracted intense public interest since Mohbad’s death.