The Managing Director of Maersk Nigeria Limited, Gildas Tohouo, is in critical condition while his wife has died after they were both stabbed and forced to drink acid by suspected armed robbers who stormed their home in Ikoyi, Lagos, on Sunday night.
Tohouo, who is receiving treatment at an undisclosed hospital in Lagos, has been a long-term staff of Maersk, serving in Guangzhou, China, and in Cameroon. He was appointed Managing Director of Maersk Nigeria in 2016. He also oversees Maersk’s operation in Benin, Niger, Togo and Ghana.
Maersk confirmed the attack in a statement issued by Richard Smith on Monday.
“We are very sorry to confirm that a colleague and his family have been attacked in their residence in Lagos, Nigeria during the evening of 8 December 2019.
“Tragically, the wife of our colleague passed away at the scene. Our colleague is in the hospital, where his condition is critical, but stable. The 3 children are all safe and accounted for,” Smith said in the statement.
“Our thoughts and deepest sympathy goes to the family. We will do whatever we can to support them in this tragedy,” Regional Managing Director of Africa for A.P. Moller-Maersk, David Williams, said.
He said relatives of the family are in the process of being notified, while relevant authorities are investigating the incident.
Investigations reveal that the attack was masterminded by an electrician who works in the estate and his friend.
The electrician and his co-robber reportedly entered the estate based on recognition.
They were said to have knocked on the Tohouo’s apartment on the pretence of wanting to fix the electricity in the house.
Upon gaining entrance into the apartment, they locked husband and wife in separate rooms and reportedly forced the wife to transfer money to them and also collected her credit card.
The attackers stabbed both husband and wife and also reportedly forced them to drink acid. The wife was then suffocated with pillow but the husband managed to survive.
He reportedly put a call through to Maersk’s Chief Security Officer who alerted the police.
The police team arrived the scene and surrounded the premises and trapped the suspects.
Lagos State Police Public Relations Officer, Bala Elkana, confirmed that the two suspects have been arrested.
He said, “Two suspects — Ade Akanbi and Olamide Adegoke — have been arrested and the knives used in perpetrating the crime have been recovered. The state Commissioner of Police, Hakeem Odumosu, has visited the scene, while homicide detectives have also cordoned off the area.”
Maersk said it is supporting the investigation “in every possible way”.
