12 ARRESTED FOR OPENING DJ ARAFAT’S COFFIN, UNDRESSING BODY
Written by Millennium on September 4, 2019
Yamoussoukro – Twelve people have been arrested by authorities in Ivory Coast over the forced invasion of the grave of late music icon, DJ Arafat in the Ivory Coast capital, Abidjan.
According to reports, fans who were unhappy for being barred from seeing the last remains of DJ Arafat forcefully opened his coffin before taking photos and videos of the corpse and subsequently posting same on social networks.
A press statement from the Mayor of Abidjan, Vincent Tohbi Irié, said: “investigations continue for the arrest of all culprits and to locate the responsibilities at all levels.” The Mayor’s office referred to the incident as a “desecration of the tomb” of the musician.
A video posted on social media shows fans opening his coffin and undressing the late musician’s body to check for tattoos and identify him.
The police dispersed the crowd with tear gas and witnesses say several people were injured. Security forces were forced to step in earlier as fans who had gathered outside the cemetery were angry that they were barred from the family ceremony.
“We wanted to see the body of our idol before the tomb was sealed,” one unnamed fan told AFP news agency.
This happened after an overnight funeral concert where tens of thousands paid tribute to the King of the offbeat coupé decale in a stadium in Abidjan. The artist died on August 12, as a result of a motorcycle accident.
News of his death led to scenes of hysteria among some of his fans and Twitter tributes from fellow artists. President Alassane Ouattara called him “a youth icon and ambassador of Ivorian music and culture”.
Popular across West Africa an, the dance music, décalé-coupé performer was given an exceptional all-night musical send-off overnight from Friday to Saturday whereby A-list African stars such as Davido, Sidiki Diabate, Fally Ipupa and Serge Beynaud sang for the music sensation.
Working as a disc jockey on Rue Princesse, DJ Arafat made his breakthrough with “Jonathan” in 2003, which he followed with a string of other hits.
SOURCE: sde.co.ke
