ALL THAT REMAINS Guitarist OLI HERBERT's Widow: 'I Absolutely Did Not Kill My Husband'

May 26, 2022

In her first interview since the death of ALL THAT REMAINS guitarist Oliver "Oli" Herbert nearly four years ago, his wife Elizabeth Herbert denied having anything to do with his passing. "I absolutely did not kill my husband," she told Daily Mail.

She also took a swipe at the lead detective over the way she was treated after she became a target in the investigation, questioned not just by cops but also by Oli's friends, family and bandmates.

"You could tell he was fan of the band," she said. "Here he is, this country cop, and he's working on a rock star who died. I think he got star struck and was on a power trip."

Oli was found dead on October 16, 2018 at the edge of the pond on his Stafford Springs, Connecticut property. He was reported missing by his wife about 3 p.m., and his body was found by police face down at the edge of the pond where the water was only a few inches deep. The medical examiner's office conducted an autopsy showing that Oli had three prescription drugs in his system — the antipsychotic olanzapine, the antidepressant citalopram, and Ambien. It also said: "Mr. Herbert's past medical history is reportedly significant for marijuana use."

The Connecticut State Police Eastern District Crime Squad is still investigating Herbert's death, which is being treated as suspicious. They are looking at the will he signed a week before his death as well as a life insurance policy mentioned in the will.

The will named Elizabeth Herbert as executor and sole benefactor. It said that Oliver Herbert's sister, Cynthia Herbert, should not become executor or receive anything from his estate. The will also stated that Elizabeth Herbert should get all "property as well as any current or future earnings."

Elizabeth, a self-described pagan, told Daily Mail the timing of the will was purely coincidental, that she and Oli had just recently had a friend die and wanted to prepare for the unexpected.

"We loved each other, we trusted each other and we were husband and wife, despite everyone else doing whatever they could to break us up," she said. "We were leaving each other everything, including making each other beneficiaries of each other's life insurance policies."

Others who knew Oli painted a different picture of the couple's relationship, saying that he was actually considering a divorce. They claimed Elizabeth was frequently hostile to Oli and bandmates and routinely accused him of sleeping with groupies.

According to the Hartford Courant, state police seized Elizabeth Herbert's computer and phone records as part of their investigation.

The couple were married for 14 years and lived in Stafford Springs for four years before Oli's death.

In 2020, ALL THAT REMAINS singer Phil Labonte called Elizabeth Herbert a "garbage human being" who was "never allowed" to join the band on tour. "She would come to the local shows, because we couldn't stop her from showing up," he explained. "[But] she wasn't allowed because she's a garbage human being."

According to the singer, he tried unsuccessfully to convince Oli to get a divorce for a long time. "I can't tell you exactly why he wouldn't do it or what the circumstances [were] surrounding his resistance," he said. "I don't know. But I can say that I personally talked to him multiple times and said, 'Look, if you need a place to stay, I've got plenty of room. Come to my house."

Asked if he had an opinion on how Oli died, the singer responded: "I do have an opinion on it, but I'm not gonna say. There is an ongoing investigation by the Connecticut state police."

Herbert began playing guitar at 14. He co-founded ALL THAT REMAINS with Labonte in 1998.

The surviving members of ALL THAT REMAINS later recruited guitar virtuoso and YouTube personality Jason Richardson (ALL SHALL PERISH, CHELSEA GRIN, BORN OF OSIRIS) to replace Herbert.

In March 2021, Labonte revealed that a financial dispute with Elizabeth Herbert has made it impossible for ALL THAT REMAINS to use Oli's name in connection with any of its projects. Speaking to American Songwriter, Labonte said he and his bandmates have toyed with the idea of hosting benefits for Herbert and even starting a charity or project in the late musician's name. "We talked about ideas to do a benefit to raise money for kids in schools, but we can't do anything that has his name on it," Labonte said.

Labonte also confirmed that ALL THAT REMAINS has always paid everything owed to Herbert's estate and will continue to do so.

"We've made sure that that our accountants and all the people that work with us know any money that is owed to Oli Herbert's estate must be paid to Oli Herbert's estate," Labonte explained. "And we have absolutely no interest in not paying. It's not worth any kind of hassle for the amount of money."

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