Lagos shuts down purple mall in Lekki after man mistakenly drives off multi-storey parking lot
Bereaved mother seeks justice
The Lagos State Government has sealed off the popular Purple Mall in Lekki following the tragic death of 28-year-old Obinna, who died in a parking lot incident on Thursday, June 26.
Obinna’s grieving mother, Kylie, revealed that her son, who regularly exercised at the mall’s gym, had driven into the facility that day and was directed to park on the fifth floor.
She explained that CCTV footage showed his car “tipping over” while he was searching for a parking space.
“There were no signs or instructions indicating entry or exit. My son mistakenly entered through the exit. It’s a multi-level car park and he was driving very slowly. He wasn’t speeding at all,” she said. “When he got to the fifth floor, the CCTV showed the car tip over. After that, there was nothing else on the footage.”
According to Kylie, it took 35 minutes for mall staff to extract her son from the vehicle and transport him to the hospital, where he was pronounced dead on arrival.
Mall representatives claimed that a valet had offered to assist Obinna with parking, but he declined—an assertion the mother disputed. She said her son’s friend, who was driving behind him, confirmed that staff instructed them to self-park their vehicles.
In response to the incident, the Lagos State Ministry of the Environment and Water Resources announced the indefinite closure of the mall on Wednesday, July 2, pending a full investigation.
Commissioner for the Environment and Water Resources, Tokunbo Wahab, signed the closure order and stated that a specialised investigative team will be assembled to determine the root cause of the incident and assess the building’s compliance with safety and structural regulations.
“This heartbreaking accident was entirely preventable,” Wahab said. “We will ensure full accountability and implement necessary measures to avoid such tragedies in the future.”
He also extended his condolences to Obinna’s family, stressing that “Lagosians deserve safe public spaces, and we will not compromise on this.”
Updates on the investigation will be provided as it progresses, the commissioner assured.
