Nigerian Billionaire, Ambassador Chief Antonio Dehinde Fernandez has died at the age of 79. Dele Momodu and his daughter announced his demise on twitter.
Dehinde Fernandez and daughter
According to ThisDay, one of Nigeria’s most flamboyant multibillionaires and diplomats, Chief Antonio Oladeinde Fernandez, is dead. He died on Tuesday in Brussels, Belgium, at the age of 79 from what a source close to his family described as an age-related illness.
The source said he spoke to Fernandez last week and could tell from his breathing that he was very ill, but did not expect that he would die so soon after his conversation with the Lagos-born chief with royal roots.
Fernandez made his mark as a businessman early in life from mining. His business interests cut across oil and gas in Angola and extensive real estate spanning Nigeria, France, the United States, United Kingdom and Belgium.
He was said to own an Island in New York City, a chateau once said to have belonged to Napoleon Bonaparte in France, and a Grade A listed home in Edinburgh.
In addition to being a businessman, he was a renowned diplomat, variously serving as Ambassador Plenipotentiary to a number of countries in Africa.
In 1982 he was an adviser to the Angolan Government on Economic Matters. He held the position of an adviser for two years until his appointment as Deputy Permanent Representative of Mozambique to the United Nations in 1984.