A wealthy British-Nigerian influencer known for showcasing luxury homes and lavish vacations died during one of those trips after undergoing a cosmetic penis enlargement procedure in Bangkok, an inquest has found.
Igo “Tiny” Obiribwo, 43, received injections of hyaluronic acid and lidocaine intended to increase the girth of his penis at an unnamed clinic in Thailand on March 5. Less than a day later, he died from a pulmonary embolism while vacationing with his wife, fashion designer and celebrity Danielle Simba Allen.
According to the investigation into his death, doctors injected 40 milliliters of the substances during the procedure. Obiribwo and his wife were staying at the Marriott hotel in Bangkok at the time.
After the treatment, the couple went for a massage. There, Obiribwo complained of chest pain and lost consciousness twice.
He was taken by ambulance to Sukumvit Hospital, where he was initially alert enough to answer medical staff’s questions. His wife told doctors about the filler injection, but he lost consciousness before they were able to perform a CT scan.
Doctors diagnosed a pulmonary embolism, a blockage in a blood vessel in the lungs, and transferred him to intensive care. Hospital staff attempted to resuscitate him for more than 100 minutes, but he died in the early hours of March 6, about a day after the procedure.
His death was examined in an inquest at West London Coroner’s Court, the public legal process used in Britain to establish the circumstances of sudden or unusual deaths. Because Obiribwo died in Thailand, his body was returned to Britain for a postmortem examination and the inquest.
The British autopsy found cellular material in his lungs consistent with the hyaluronic acid that had been injected into his penis. Pathologist John du Parc told the hearing that the finding was consistent with a pulmonary embolism and also matched the conclusions of the postmortem examination carried out in Thailand.
(Photo: Instagram)
London coroner Jean Harkin ruled this week that Obiribwo died as a result of a cosmetic procedure carried out abroad and recorded the cause of death as a pulmonary embolism caused by the hyaluronic acid injection.
Obiribwo’s family doctor in London told the hearing that he had previously undergone joint surgery, was prediabetic and suffered from gout, but was otherwise healthy.
Medical experts have repeatedly warned that penis filler injections can cause serious complications. Prof. Vaibhav Modgil, a consultant urological surgeon and andrology specialist in Britain’s National Health Service, has warned that the procedure can have devastating consequences.
Hyaluronic acid injections for penis enlargement can cost thousands of shekels and sometimes tens of thousands, depending on the amount of filler used. Their effect typically lasts only six to nine months.
Possible complications include loss of sensation, erectile dysfunction, infection, inflammation and deformity caused by scarring.
(Photo: Instagram)
Obiribwo, who was also known as “Denisy” or “Ego,” had around 185,000 Instagram followers and was known for his extravagant lifestyle.
He owned a home valued at about $1.1 million in Los Angeles’ Crenshaw neighborhood and an apartment worth roughly $600,000 in London. He and Allen married in Zimbabwe in 2022 in a lavish ceremony reported to have cost $473,000.
In May, Obiribwo was buried in London in a gold-colored coffin that reports said cost more than $745,000. Among those attending the funeral were his friend, Nigerian singer Davido, and Cubana Chief Priest, also known as the “Celebrity Barman.”
Cubana Chief Priest paid tribute to him in an emotional message: “Rest in peace, my brother. Even in death, we kept up the lifestyle for you. Today London stood still for you, Tiny. We love you, celebrate your life and will never forget you, my brother. We lived life, my brother, good memories.”