Herbert Wigwe, the CEO of Access Bank in Nigeria, was killed in a helicopter crash in California on February 9th, 2024. He was flying from Palm Springs to Las Vegas with his wife, son, and several others when the helicopter crashed in the Mojave Desert, killing all six people on board.
Wigwe was considered a visionary leader in the Nigerian banking industry. His death shocked the business community in Nigeria and across Africa. Nigerian President Bola Tinubu and Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, Director-General of the World Trade Organization, both released statements mourning his passing and conveying condolences to his family and colleagues.
The crash is being investigated by the FAA and NTSB. The helicopter was operated by a charter company and crashed amid rainy, wintry weather. Witnesses saw it descend rapidly before impacting the ground. The debris field stretched over 100 yards. The cause of the crash is still unknown.
In another recent celebrity death, the world record-holding marathon runner Kelvin Kiptum of Kenya was also killed in a car accident at age 24, cutting short what was sure to be a stellar athletic career.