Three Nigerians Die In Separate South Africa Incidents, Consulate Demands Investigation

Nigeria has demanded an investigation after three of its nationals died in separate incidents in South Africa between September 18 and 21, with the Consulate-General in Johannesburg calling on authorities to identify everyone responsible.

Nigeria’s Consul-General in Johannesburg, Ambassador Ninikanwa Okey-Uche, said the victims were Kenechukwu Christopher Igwemmadu, Olaniyi Olaleye Olatunde and Christian Hillary Nnaemeka. The mission asked South African authorities to establish the circumstances of each death and to bring anyone found culpable to justice.

In a statement signed by Okey-Uche, the Consulate said Igwemmadu died on September 18 after jumping from a building while attempting to escape what the mission described as harassment and brutality by a policeman at Kenlin Court on Douglas Street in the Bloemfontein city centre. She said Olatunde, a security guard, was shot on September 20 at Spanata Bar and Grills Night Club in Mamelodi East, Pretoria, and pronounced dead at Mamelodi Hospital on September 21.

The Consulate said the guard had tried to stop a customer leaving the club with a cup belonging to the establishment when an altercation followed. The customer pulled out a firearm and shot Olatunde in the lower part of his body, causing heavy blood loss, while the suspected shooter later returned to the premises and threatened witnesses before leaving again.

Nnaemeka died on September 21 after an encounter in Primrose, Ekurhuleni, with the Sizok’thola anti-drug vigilante team led by Xolani Khumalo, a South African politician and investigative content creator. The Consulate said Nnaemeka was reported to have been assaulted during the encounter and collapsed at a hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

Okey-Uche maintained that all three accounts remain allegations pending official investigations, urging Nigerians in South Africa to remain calm, law-abiding and security-conscious. She acknowledged growing concern over the treatment of Nigerians in the country and cautioned that persons accused of wrongdoing are entitled to due process, presumption of innocence and the chance to defend themselves in court.

The same Consulate had earlier in September urged South African authorities to investigate after eight women were found dead in separate Johannesburg homes in one week, as reported here.

Nigeria’s ambassador-designate to South Africa, Femi Fani-Kayode, separately confirmed the deaths in a statement on Monday. He said the three incidents raised the number of Nigerians allegedly killed in the country this year to twelve, out of 112 recorded since 2022. He further alleged that nobody had been convicted in connection with the killings and appealed to Pretoria to protect Nigerians living in the country.

Sources: Punch, Daily Trust, Peoples Gazette, The ICIR