UK police hunt for missing Nigerian poet Gboyega Odubanjo

The UK police are appealing for information to help find Gboyega Odubanjo, the British-Nigerian poet, who went missing at a rural music festival.

The award-winning poet has been missing since the early hours of Saturday morning.

The 27-year-old was last seen attending Shambala festival in the Kelmarsh area of Northamptonshire, where he was due to perform later that day.

In a statement, the police said Odubanjo is 5ft 6in tall with short black dreadlocks and a full-face beard.

The statement added that he usually wears glasses and was last seen in a beige/cream bucket hat, a red and white striped gilet, black trousers and dark shoes.

“Gboyega is from the Bromley area of London. If you see Gboyega, please call Northamptonshire Police on 999,” the statement reads in part.

“Information and previous sightings can also be reported by calling 101, quoting reference number MPD1/2619/23.

“Gboyega if you see this appeal, please contact us or your loved ones – we need to make sure you are safe and OK.”

Odubanjo is studying for a Ph.D. at the University of Hertfordshire. He works as an editor for Bad Betty Press and the poetry magazine Bath Magg.

“Gboyega is a loving and caring son who means the world to our family,” a statement from his relatives read.

“He has a warm and infectious personality, a contagious smile, and a heart full of kindness.

“We believe that Gboyega’s disappearance is entirely out of character for him, and we are genuinely worried for his safety and wellbeing.”

‘Aunty Uncle Poems,’ Odubanjo’s pamphlet, was a winner of the Poetry Business New Poets prize in 2020.