“Unrelated to our operations,” Popular Lekki cinema speaks as two feared dead from violent attacks outside facility

Two people have reportedly died following a violent attack at the car park of Filmhouse Cinemas IMAX in Lekki, Lagos.

The incident occurred in the early hours of Saturday and was later confirmed by the management of Filmhouse in a statement.

According to reports, a man armed with a cutlass attacked a security personnel and another individual at the cinema premises. The victims reportedly resisted the attacker and prevented him from gaining access to the facility.

An eyewitness, Buchi Laba, a sports journalist, also recounted the incident in a post on X. He said one of the victims sustained a stab wound to the chest, while the other was stabbed in the back. He further claimed that one of them died while being taken to the hospital.

Laba said he had been at the cinema to watch “Odyssey”, which started at about 10pm and ended around 2am, shortly before the incident occurred.

Filmhouse, in its statement, expressed sadness over the incident and said investigations were ongoing in collaboration with the relevant authorities.

The company also praised the two victims for their bravery, saying their actions helped prevent the situation from escalating and enabled safety to be restored.

“Filmhouse Group is deeply saddened by a security incident that took place outside the premises, in the car park of one of our locations, in the early hours of this morning,” the statement reads.

“The incident was unrelated to our regular operations. We are working closely with the relevant authorities, who are leading the ongoing investigation, and have taken additional precautionary measures across our locations.

“Both individuals stood between danger and the people in their care, and it is through their bravery that the situation was contained and safety restored. Their commitment and courage in that moment will not be forgotten.

“The safety and wellbeing of our staff and guests remain our highest priority. Security across all our locations has been increased and prioritised, and the safety of our guests and everyone within our premises remains of the utmost importance to us. We continue to monitor the ongoing situation.”

Filmhouse said security measures had been strengthened across its locations following the incident.

Efforts to obtain an official reaction from the Lagos State Police Command were unsuccessful as of the time of filing the report.