32-year-old Nigerian man married to 50-year-old Russian woman dies of heart attack

Russian investigators have launched an investigation into the death of 32-year-old Nigerian man identified as Gabriel Segun Ajayi who reportedly died of heart attack in a club.

The 32-year-old Nigerian man who is married to a 50-year-old Russian woman, died of a massive heart attack at a dance club last Friday night, October 12, in the city of Cherepovets, about 500 km north of Moscow, and according to investigators, the cause of death would be determined after a forensic examination.

While the Nigerian embassy in Moscow has raised an alarm over the death of the Nigerian national, it was gathered that the couple captured the attention of Russian daytime talk shows with their romance, due both to the 18 year age difference between them and the unusual story of a reported Nigerian prince agreeing to move to rural Russia to be with his wife.

According to the local news agency IMA Cherepovets, the two got to know each other through an online dating service and initially had to use Google Translate to break through the language barrier. Gabriel reportedly had difficulties with getting a Russian visa, so their first chance to see each other in person came in 2013, when Natalia travelled to Nigeria to meet the man’s family. Natalia’s 22-year-old eldest son was also not sure at first after his mom met the Nigerian man in 2012, however he settled in after he turned out to be real and in 2017, Natalia gave birth to twin boys.

Shortly after he arrived Russia, the Nigerian man who began learning the language also started a job as a tractor driver and local IT specialist. Natalyia was devastated by the news of her husband’s death.

“Gabriel had a massive heart attack, he collapsed and died. He wasn’t on any medications. My husband didn’t have any complaints about his heart. I was informed two hours after it happened…Our children are just babies –they are just a year old, they don’t understand anything yet,” she said.

The burial arrangement of Ajayi has been made, and it was gathered that only his mother who lives with the rest of the family in a nearby village will be attending, as the rest of Ajayi’s family can’t attend the funeral due to the distance and difficulties in obtaining a visa on such a short notice, according to local media.