Controversial actor-cum-preacher, Yul Edochie, has clarified his relationship with movie producer and CEO of Ason-Rich Movie Production, Henry Odenigbo.
A filmmaker and actor, Stanley Nwoko, also known as Stanley Ontop, posted photos of the controversial producer, Odenigbo alleging him(Odenigbo) to be the ‘‘ringleader’’ of the kidnap gang, killed in the shootout by the Lagos State Police Command.
The Lagos state PRO Benjamin Hundeyin had disclosed that the kidnap gang plotted to abduct wealthy individuals in the state although he didn’t disclose the identities of the slain kidnappers.
Reacting to the development on Instagram, Edochie debunked rumours that he was a friend of the deceased.
He explained that the photo of himself (Edochie) and the deceased circulating on social media was taken in June on a movie set, adding that there was nothing more as that was his first time of meeting the man adding that the photo was taken at the request of the late filmmaker.
He said in part: “According to the police, the guy is a kidnapper. I’ve heard stories and noticed that some blogs posted my picture with him, implying he’s my friend. So, I want to state that the guy wasn’t my friend. I’ve been in Nollywood for 19 years, going on 20 years.
“I only saw this guy once when I shot a movie for him a few weeks ago. A director contracted me for a movie and paid me for a job. I even thought it was the director’s movie until I came to the set and met this guy.
“I think he called himself Ason-Rich Henry. He came to me, introduced himself as Ason-Rich Productions, and said his name was Henry.
“We greeted them, I shot the movie, and on the last day of shooting, he came to me and said he was so excited that he finally got to work with me. I think he also played a role in the movie. He asked if he could take a picture with me, and I said okay. We took pictures, and I left for the next set.
“That was the first time I saw him, and I never saw him again. That’s the picture a lot of people are circulating. I understand people are circulating the picture and saying he’s my friend. He is not my friend. I got to know him as a producer, and I don’t know why people are circulating my picture,’’ Edochie said.
Lagos kidnappers: Henry Odenigbo not my friend – Yul Edochie