The Nigerian Police has vowed to investigate the cause of the death of one of Nigeria's e-commerce icons, one-time Chief Executive Officer of Kinga Nick Imudia, who committed suicide. The Commissioner of Police, Lagos State Command, Adegoke Fayoade, said this on Thursday on the sideline of the 2024 Chartered Pension Institute of Nigeria (CPIN) investiture/induction ceremony of new fellows and associates in Maryland, Lagos. Fayoade said the police would want to ascertain what was responsible for the death of Imudia. Imudia was reported to have jumped to death from a story building in the late hours of 25th June 2024, in his Lagos home in the Lekki area.
Before his death, the businessman reportedly made a call to his United States-based brother to give him instructions on how to distribute his wealth and also called his young daughter to inform her that he would always be there for her.
According to a post on an online platform, TheWill, friends, family and associates of Imudia are still in shock about why he would commit suicide.
It was reported that, Imudia, who was until his death, the CEO of D.light, a leading innovator in the distribution and financing of residential solar energy solutions and transformational household products
The report said: “Before making the jump, he had called his US-based brother to give him instructions on how to distribute his wealth should anything happen to him.
“He also called his young daughter from a previous relationship and told her he would always be there for her and that all she needed to do was to look in the sky and he would see her.
“His friends, family, and associates are in shock as to why he would commit suicide. No one is sure why he took his own life.
“From the Ika South local government area of Delta State, Nick was previously married to the mother of his young daughter who was also from the same local government with him. The marriage ended due to irreconcilable differences.”
Nick Imudia was born on April 28, 1979, in Delta State, Imudia earned a Bachelor of Engineering degree in Industrial Management from the Mikkeli Institute of Technology in Finland in 1997 and a Master of Engineering degree from Aalborg University in 2000.
Twelve years later, he earned an MBA in International Business Management from the Haaga-Helia University of Applied Sciences. With experience as a design engineer and a solution manager at NTC and Nok, respectively, Imudia proceeded well to become the managing director of Nokia, a global technology giant.
In this role, he managed the delivery of sales and marketing and supervised the management of the Nokia Device Business and Operations in West and Central Africa.
After eight years at Nokia, Imudia became the Regional Director of Alcatel OneTouch in Nigeria and Central Africa. Following his exit from Alcatel, he emerged as the CEO of Nigeria’s e-commerce giant, Konga, a position he held from April 2018 to October 2022.
During his life, Imudia prided himself on having a proven track record in developing and executing successful business strategies with a keen understanding of market trends and a knack for leveraging innovative solutions.
Clients and people who knew Nick personally shared their thoughts on social media. “Worked with Nick and his team on one of my early deals as an I-banking analyst. He was always animated and helpful whenever we went to the Konga office in Gbagada. May God grant his family and associates the fortitude to bear this loss,” shared Shola Fatimoju, a netizen.
Vaishali Pandi, who once reported directly to Imudia, noted that he is a people manager. In his words, “Nick has the ability and foresight to think past the issues at hand and look at the bigger picture while making sure his team goals are met.”