Lanre Shittu, Popular Nigerian Automobile Dealer, Is Dead

Olanrewaju Rasak Shittu, a popular Nigerian automobile tycoon, has died.

One of Nigeria’s prominent automobile dealers and socialites, Shittu passed away Monday morning at age 65, a source close to the family disclosed.

Shittu was a successful entrepreneur and the number one dealer of Mack trucks in Africa, holding the sole franchise for Mack brand vehicles in Nigeria and also the only dealer of Sany heavy duty equipment and Yutong buses in Nigeria.

The successful business man was also a licensed dealer of KIA, NISSAN, Jinbei Buses, and was the leading supplier of genuine spare parts to automobile dealers in Nigeria and others.

He was not, however, without controversy during his lifetime. In November 2000, he was allegedly abducted by operatives from the United States Drug Enforcement Agency in conjunction with their Nigerian counterpart, the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) and arraigned in a U.S court.

However, the District Court of New York lacked the jurisdiction to entertain the matter because both countries had violated the treaty on extradition.

Also, before his demise, there was a pending civil suit at the Federal High Court, Abuja over a move by the Federal Government to extradite him to America to answer to the alleged money laundering charge against him.