Chief Willie Obiano, former Governor of Anambra State, has died in London, United Kingdom, following severe heart failure and complications from urinary cancer, SaharaReporters has learned.
Multiple sources, including senior family members, confirmed the ex-governor’s death on Sunday night, describing it as sudden despite months of declining health.
“His health had been declining in the past months, but the final collapse came suddenly. We are devastated,” a family source disclosed to SaharaReporters.
Medical personnel at the London hospital where Obiano was receiving treatment revealed that the former governor had been admitted to intensive care before his condition deteriorated fatally.
“He fought till the very last moment,” a hospital official stated.
Obiano’s death comes as he was facing trial in Nigeria over alleged financial crimes committed during his time in office. The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission had filed charges against him for allegedly laundering N4 billion in state funds.
The Federal High Court in Abuja had scheduled November 25 for the continuation of his trial, following the reassignment of the case to Justice Mohammed Umar.
The anti-graft agency accused the former governor of misappropriating public resources during his eight-year tenure as Anambra State chief executive, which spanned from March 2014 to March 2022.
At the most recent court hearing, the EFCC’s counsel, Sylvanus Tahir (SAN), had called witnesses to testify against Obiano, including Ugochukwu Otubelu, a former commercial bank official who managed accounts linked to the ex-governor.
Otubelu, now a businessman, told the court that he handled the security vote account associated with Obiano’s administration, working closely with the former governor’s Principal Secretary, Willy Nwokoye, and the state government’s Accountant, Theophilus Nweze.
According to his testimony, Otubelu interfaced with these officials “daily and weekly” while processing transactions related to the security vote—a discretionary fund typically allocated to governors for security purposes but often criticized for lack of transparency.
Obiano served as Anambra State governor for two terms before handing over power to the current governor, Professor Chukwuma Soludo, in March 2022. His administration was marked by infrastructure projects and efforts to maintain security in the state, though it ended under the cloud of corruption allegations.
The circumstances of his death abroad while facing serious criminal charges in Nigeria mirror a pattern that has raised concerns about accountability for public officials accused of malfeasance.
It remains unclear what impact Obiano’s death will have on the ongoing prosecution, as Nigerian law typically abates criminal proceedings upon the death of an accused person.
Details regarding funeral arrangements and the family’s plans to repatriate his remains to Nigeria were not immediately available at the time of this report.
