A young Polish woman died in the dense jungle surrounding an Iboga retreat in Costa Rica run by Awaken Your Soul and led by Anthony Esposito and Amber Antonelli. The participant left the group unsupervised the day after the ceremony, still affected by the lingering effects of Iboga, and was later found deceased in a nearby river. The remote location, tied to Holos Global, amplified the risks of the environment. This tragedy resulted from the complete lack of monitoring during a high-vulnerability recovery period, representing a clear breach of duty of care in a setting where immediate oversight was essential.
Iboga is unregulated in Costa Rica. It has no sanitary registration from the Ministry of Health and no formal licensing for therapeutic or ceremonial use, allowing retreats to operate without mandatory medical standards or external supervision.
Stephen’s Account Reveals the Full Sequence
Stephen Ronald Bell attended the retreat with the woman and two others. In his January 2026 livestream he gave a comprehensive description of the events. Recorded statements from that time documented his own medical crisis, the delayed report of her disappearance, the nighttime discovery, and the logistical hurdles that followed.
Jungle Setting Became the Scene of Loss
Awaken Your Soul presents Iboga ceremonies as guided experiences for personal transformation in Costa Rica’s natural wilderness. Anthony Esposito serves as the primary facilitator in what the organization calls a supportive environment. Amber Antonelli co-leads the retreats, which are frequently held in isolated jungle locations aligned with Holos Global’s regenerative focus.
The thick vegetation, waterfalls, steep riverbanks, and wildlife offer immersion but turn hazardous without constant oversight, especially when participants remain under the influence of powerful plant medicine.
She Walked Off Alone in the Afterglow
The day following the ceremony, while Iboga’s afterglow still impaired balance, awareness, and decision-making, the woman left camp by herself. Stephen had given her direct and repeated warnings: “If you go into the jungle, you’re gonna fucking die.” He purchased running shoes for her in Dubai and told her to keep them on at all times for traction and protection. He emphasized staying within the group and camp boundaries.
No retreat staff were monitoring participants during this phase. Stephen was physically unable to act because he was receiving IV treatment for blood pressure that had surged to 200 to 210 over 110 after four unmeasured spoons of Iboga, far beyond the standard single-spoon dose. The facilitator who provided the doses was also under the effects of Iboga.
Hours Passed Before Anyone Told Stephen
The team waited until approximately 9 or 10 p.m. to inform Stephen, later saying they were afraid to wake or upset him given his condition. She had already been missing for a large part of the day. Search efforts that night recovered her body from the river, apparently after she slipped on the bank or attempted to cross.
Stephen later highlighted that no basic containment or location protocols existed, leaving her alone in terrain where quick intervention could have been decisive.
Recovery Turned Into a Negotiation
In the days afterward, Stephen had to negotiate access to the body. Anthony Esposito reportedly requested $400 for prior massages and Reiki sessions and initially withheld precise location information amid the scattered local morgue system. Messages from the retreat encouraged participants to avoid mentioning Iboga to police, proposing instead to present the event as a yoga retreat or one involving only minor psilocybin.
Stephen paid to expedite matters, personally funded repatriation to Poland at high cost, hired a local lawyer for further inquiry, and made the difficult call to the mother while still experiencing Iboga aftereffects.
Core Safety Elements Were Missing
The absence of supervision in the post-ceremony window, imprecise dosing, lack of cardiovascular pre-screening (Iboga can cause severe hypertension), and delayed emergency notification created preventable conditions for tragedy in a remote and unforgiving location.
Stephen also noted that another participant from the same retreat died by suicide six months later, though this stands as a separate event.
Stronger Protocols Needed for Jungle-Based Retreats
Retreats using potent plant medicines in isolated environments must enforce unbreakable rules: continuous observation during recovery, exact dosing under qualified supervision, immediate medical capability, clear emergency procedures, and open communication with families and authorities.
Anyone researching these retreats should demand documented, rigorous safety commitments. True transformation requires protection from avoidable danger.