Fact-check: No, Katsina United’s Ozor Did Not ‘Come Back to Life

What we know about  Chinedu Ozor’s death

On Tuesday, 11th August, the late Chinedu Ozor lost his life during a friendly pre-season match between his club side, Katsina United, and the Niger Tornadoes at the Muhammadu Dikko Stadium, Katsina.

It was reported by the player’s club, Katsina United, that the player suffered a medical emergency during the match and was immediately rushed to K-Dara Specialist Hospital for urgent medical attention.

After health personnel made efforts to provide medical attention to save the player’s life, he was later confirmed dead.

However, in an obituary condolence statement issued by Katsina United, the club confirmed Ozor lost his life and extended their condolence message to the family, friends, and the entire football community.

The misinformation (what was later reported)

In a later report dated 12th August, a Nigerian newspaper, Daily Trust, reported that the late Ozor Chinedu regained consciousness in a mutiny.

The report was published with the headline “Confusion as Katsina United player declared dead found alive in mortuary”, with a claim that “in a dramatic twist, mortuary staff at Katsina General Hospital later observed movement in his body.”

The story further stated that “the media officer of Katsina United, Nasir Gide, confirmed the development, saying the player had been declared dead twice before signs of life were noticed.

Apparently giving late players’ families and Nigerians the impression that Ozor is still alive and remains in critical condition.

What was later reported

After Katsina United rejected the claim that the player regained consciousness or came back to life as inaccurate, the story should be dismissed regardless. The Daily Trust reported with a headline, “Our player, Chinedu Ozor, is dead – Katsina United”, but the newspaper did not retract the earlier story which suggested Ozor remained alive but in critical condition after coming back to life.

The Katsina United Response

While emphasising the need for media outlets to verify information before publishing, Katsina United categorically stated that “Chinedu did not regain consciousness. He passed away.”

“We have seen reports claiming that Chinedu later regained consciousness or ‘came back to life. We understand that people desperately wanted this to be true. We all did. But sadly, those reports are not true.

“The club is grieving. And somewhere, a family is facing a pain that words cannot begin to describe.

So please, we ask from the bottom of our hearts: stop the rumours. Stop the false reports. Stop sharing unverified information.

Behind every post, every headline and every video is a grieving family. Behind the name Chinedu Ozor was a son, a brother, a teammate, a friend and a young man whose life meant so much to many people,” the statement added.

Claim/Verdict

Claim: Ozor regained consciousness and came back to life after being declared dead.

Verdict: The story is misleading and false. Katsina United confirmed that Ozor never regained consciousness.