Another yet-to-be-identified suspect was set ablaze by an irate mob at the scene after being neutralised by the security forces.
A statement issued yesterday by the FCT Police Public Relations Officer, SP Josephine Adeh, said: “In a swift response to an armed robbery incident at First Bank Plc in Abaji on June 13, 2024, at about 5:00 pm, the FCT police, led by the Commissioner of Police, CP Benneth C. Igweh, psc, mni himself in a combined operation with the military, mobilised to the scene and repelled the attack simultaneously carried out on both Abaji Divisional Police Headquarters and First Bank Plc in Abaji by a group of 15 armed men who attacked with dynamites in an attempt to rob the bank.
“One police operative and the gang leader hit by bullets during the gun duel were rushed to the hospital where the doctor on duty confirmed them dead while others are still receiving treatment.
“While search operation is ongoing to apprehend fleeing suspects with bullet injuries, the Commissioner of Police for FCT, CP Benneth C. Igweh, psc, mni, lauds the effectiveness of the combined operation and reaffirms the command’s unflinching commitment to ensuring that FCT remains inhabitable for criminals, noting that the safety of the residents of FCT is non-negotiable.”
Alia fumes, vows gunmen will be arrested; IGP says perpetrators have murdered sleep.
Benue State Police Command confirmed yesterday that two suspected members of the robbery gang that raided some commercial banks in Otukpo, Benue State on Friday have been killed.
The suspects, according to a statement issued by the Public Relations Officer of the command, Kate Aneene, a Superintendent of police (SP), were shot dead during a gun duel with a police team on Otukpo-Taraku Road in the state yesterday.
Aneene said the robbery suspects were trying to escape with their loot through the road when nemesis caught up with them.
She said a team of policemen engaged them in an exchange of gunfire, killing the two instantly while other members of the gang abandoned their vehicles and escaped into the forest.
Also confirming the death of a Divisional Police Officer (DPO) and three other policemen during the raid, Aneene said they were confirmed dead in the hospital.
Other persons who sustained injuries in the bank, she said, have since been moved to the hospital for treatment while investigation continues on the matter.
Aneene identified the banks raided by the robbers to include Access Bank, First Bank, Zenith International Bank, UBA and Stanbic Bank.
She said: “On 20/10/2023 at about 1615hrs, armed robbers invaded Access, First, Zenith, UBA and Stanbic bank Otukpo simultaneously.
“The Otukpo Divisional Police Officer, CSP John Adikwu and other police teams in the area engaged them in a gun duel but were unable to prevent the attacks on the banks.
“More police teams in collaboration with other security agents have been deployed to Otukpo to assist in stabilising the area and prevent these robbers from escaping.
“The robbers who were inter cepted along Otukpo-Taraku Road engaged officers in a gun duel and two of the robbers died in the process.
“Other gang members abandoned their vehicles and escaped into the forest area and are being chased by the police.
“The DPO who sustained a gunshot injury on his stomach and three other police officers have been confirmed dead at the hospital.
“Other persons who sustained injuries in the bank have been moved to the hospital for treatment.”
The casualties of the attacks include DPO John Adikwu of Otukpo Divisional Headquarters; Emmanuella Ankyov, a female police officer; Emmanuel Uche who concluded his mandatory National Youth Service scheme (NYSC) early in the year and recently secured a job with UBA and two others identified simply as Uloko and Desmond.
Benue State governor, Hyacinth Alia, yesterday condemned the attacks on some commercial banks in Otukpo town.
A statement issued by his spokesman, Tersoo Kula, described the robbery incident as an affront on the state, especially that it took place at the exact time the Security Council meeting was in progress at the Government House in Makurdi.
The governor sympathised with the families of those who were gruesomely murdered by the robbers during the robbery.
He said: “It is an unfortunate development that people who were on duty, especially police officers, were shot and killed in cold blood by those mindless robbers.
“But they cannot get away with this. Already, security agencies are on their trail and must apprehend and bring them to justice.”
Alia called on the people of the state to be vigilant and always endeavour to report suspicious movements around them all the time.
The Acting Inspector-General of Police, IGP Kayode Adeolu Egbetokun, condemned the robbery attacks in strong terms, describing it as an assault on the principles of peace, security, and justice which he said the Nigeria Police Force and other security agencies work tirelessly to uphold.
A statement issued by the Force Public Relations Officer, Olumuyiwa Adejobi, said the IGP extended his “heartfelt condolences” to the families and loved ones of the victims who were affected by “this senseless act of violence”.
He confirmed that two of the suspects were gunned down by operatives while attempting to escape, adding that the assailants “who orchestrated this brazen act of criminality have indeed murdered sleep”.
The statement added: “The IGP ordered the deployment of additional operational and investigative assets and resources to Otukpo, the Benue State Command and sur rounding states to assist in the swift apprehension of the other fleeing criminals responsible for this atrocity, as a follow-up to the gunning down of two of the armed robbers after a hot chase on Friday.
“In the same vein, going by this incident, the IGP has put all Commands and Formations on red alert to avert any further deadly attacks on our institutions and innocent citizens of Nigeria, more so that the Otukpo attack was an early warning sign of the Ember Month challenges which is often characterised by bank robbery and other related crimes.
“We therefore call upon the public to remain calm and cooperate with the authorities by providing any information that may aid in the investigation and pursuit of the suspects. Your assistance is invaluable in our mission to restore safety and security in the affected area and across the length and breadth of Nigeria.
“In the wake of this tragedy, the IGP reiterates the NPF’s commitment to the safety and security of the Nigerian people, standing united against acts of violence and criminality and vowing to work tirelessly to ensure that those responsible for this reprehensible act are brought to justice.
The number of policemen killed by robbers, who attacked a bank in Ijero Ekiti, Ekiti State, on Monday has risen from two to three, the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports.
This is coming just as the police command expressed sadness about the death of the three officers.
It vowed to arrest the hoodlums.
Spokesman Caleb Ikechukwu, who gave an update on the incident, said his men had recovered a vehicle reportedly stolen by the bandits during the robbery.
The robbers swooped on the town about 6pm on Monday in an ambulance, pretending to be medical officers, to beat security checks.
They first attacked a police station in the town, after which they headed for the bank where they blew the security door with explosive materials.
The ambulance conveying the robbers was laced with a coffin carrying large cache of rifles.
They allegedly killed the policemen at the police station and on the bank premises.
According to Ikechukwu, the families of the deceased would be contacted before publicly revealing their identities.
He expressed sadness about the rampant bank robbery cases in recent time and urged the public to be security conscious and provide the command with information that could help to prevent attacks on people and institutions.
“We are contacting their families to express our grief over the death.
“The police will not be deterred or shy away from the responsibility of protecting the lives and property of the people, no matter what happens.
“Our men are working assiduously to track down the bandits and bring them to justice, no matter how far they run.
“We are also stepping up our intelligence gathering mechanism with the public and other sister agencies to ensure Ekiti is safe, especially during the coming Yuletide.
“We have already recovered a Toyota car that was stolen by the bandits during the robbery. The robbers abandoned the vehicle on Aramoko Ekiti-Ijero Ekiti Road and fled into the bush upon realising that the police were closing in on them.
“We are not stopping at that, our men from the Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) and Special Intelligence Bureau (SIB) are combing the bush.
“We are chasing them and the long arm of the law shall catch up with them soon.
“We are pleased because people are cooperating. They are giving us information that will help us in arresting the robbers,” Ikechukwu said.
Akwa Ibom State Police Command has arrested three suspects from Rivers State, who specialise in robbing bank customers.
Parading the suspects yesterday in Uyo, Police Commissioner Zubairu Muazu said the suspects, Hyacent Loveday Bright, Menford Austine John and John Usam Chibueze were nabbed in Eket, following a tip-off.
He said the leader, Hyacent, is a Rivers State indigene living in Eket.
Zubairu said the suspects were arrested on November 3 when they trailed Mr. Nkerewem Bassey Akpan and robbed him of N1 million he withdrew from a bank in Eket.
Items recovered from the suspects include Toyota Avalon, N521,300, a techno phone and ATM cards.
Hyacent, 31, a father of three from Onelga Local Government of Rivers State, confessed to the crime.
He said they posed as customers to know who would withdraw big money.
Hyacent said he used to be a pipeline vandal.
The police boss said 104 were nabbed for cultism, kidnapping, robbery, child trafficking and others.
He said most of them had been arraigned and others were being investigated.
Recovered from the suspects are two AK 47 rifles, assault rifle, two pump action guns, one berretta pistol, eight locally-made pistols and single barrel gun.
Others are five cars and N2,8700,000.
Zubairu said the command’s decision to temporarily relocate the operational base of the Special Anti-Kidnapping and Anti-Cultism units to Ukanafun, Etim Ekpo and Onna local governments was positive, as 15 kidnap suspects and 20 cultists were arrested and arraigned.
Akwa Ibom State Police Command has arrested three suspects from Rivers State, who specialise in robbing bank customers.
Parading the suspects yesterday in Uyo, Police Commissioner Zubairu Muazu said the suspects, Hyacent Loveday Bright, Menford Austine John and John Usam Chibueze were nabbed in Eket, following a tip-off.
He said the leader, Hyacent, is a Rivers State indigene living in Eket.
Zubairu said the suspects were arrested on November 3 when they trailed Mr. Nkerewem Bassey Akpan and robbed him of N1 million he withdrew from a bank in Eket.
Items recovered from the suspects include Toyota Avalon, N521,300, a techno phone and ATM cards.
Hyacent, 31, a father of three from Onelga Local Government of Rivers State, confessed to the crime.
He said they posed as customers to know who would withdraw big money.
Hyacent said he used to be a pipeline vandal.
The police boss said 104 were nabbed for cultism, kidnapping, robbery, child trafficking and others.
He said most of them had been arraigned and others were being investigated.
Recovered from the suspects are two AK 47 rifles, assault rifle, two pump action guns, one berretta pistol, eight locally-made pistols and single barrel gun.
Others are five cars and N2,8700,000.
Zubairu said the command’s decision to temporarily relocate the operational base of the Special Anti-Kidnapping and Anti-Cultism units to Ukanafun, Etim Ekpo and Onna local governments was positive, as 15 kidnap suspects and 20 cultists were arrested and arraigned.
Two policemen who were killed by robbers during an attack on a branch of Zenith Bank in Imo State have been recommended for posthumous promotion, according to Police Commissioner Chris Ezike.
Ezike told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Owerri that another policeman, Otu Attang, who survived the February 22, 2017 attack, would also be promoted with the deceased officers, Messrs Chukwudi Iboko and Sunday Agbo.
Four armed men on that day, trailed a man to the bank in Owerri, and in the process, attacked police officers attached to the place.
In the gun battle, the policemen killed one of the robbers identified as Ikechukwu Okpara, but lost Messrs Iboko and Agbo.
Ezike said the recommendation followed the huge sacrifice the three officers made to save the bank and its customers.
“The officers were gallant and showed serious commitment during the robbery attack. Nigeria Police Force cannot abandon them,” he said.
The commissioner also said the management of the bank had undertaken to offer scholarship to the children of the deceased officers.
He said three of the suspected armed robbers, Justice Ogbonna, Abiye Charles and Okechukwu Nwanegbo, who attacked the bank, had been arrested, adding that different types of arms were recovered from them.
A policeman and four others were reportedly killed yesterday in a bank robbery at Ogbagi in Akoko Northwest Local Government Area of Ondo State.
An eyewitness said explosives were used to destroy the new generation bank’s entrance.
He said an undisclosed amount of money was carted away as the hoodlums shot sporadically into the air.
The branch was relocated from Ogbagi to Ikare some years ago but was returned to Ogbagi about a year ago.
A community leader, Chief Eli Olorunsola, called on the government to be more proactive as incessant bank robberies were affecting economic activities.
Efforts to speak with Ogbagi Divisional Police Officer (DPO) failed.
Last year, nearly all banks in Ikare Akoko were robbed and more than 10 persons and six policemen killed.
This led to the banks’ closure for months in the four local government areas of Akokoland.
Five persons, including three policemen and two bank customers, were killed yesterday by robbers, who invaded a new generation bank on Wethedral Road in Owerri, the Imo State capital.
One of the bandits was also killed in a crossfire with security men attached to the bank before others escaped with an unspecified amount of cash.
An eyewitness said 12 gunmen operating in three vehicles trailed a customer, who was going to make a deposit.
The source added: “One of the vehicles conveying the robbers drove into the bank with the victim.
“Others parked outside. After shooting the victim, they opened the boot of his car to collect the money as security men engaged them in a shootout.
“Those outside the bank started shooting to scare away passersby.
“Those inside the bank shot their way out after killing three security men and a bank customer, who attempted to run out of the bank.”
A bank official, who pleaded for anonymity, said: “We were in the banking hall when we heard sporadic gunshots.
“We locked down the building to prevent them from gaining entrance to the bank hall but one of our workers who walked out was shot and is in a critical condition now.”
Armed policemen have taken over the premises. The bodies of the victims, including that of the suspected robber, have been removed.
Police spokesman Andrew Enwerem denied that it was a bank robbery.
He said: “It was not a bank robbery. A bank customer was robbed in the front of the bank and security men attached to the bank engaged the gunmen and shot down one of them. Others fled”.
The spokesman was silent on the death of the policemen attached to the bank, adding that the police are on the trail of the fleeing robbers.
The police have arrested a senior Access Bank Plc official, a policeman and three others for alleged involvement in a failed attempt to rob a branch of the bank in Port Harcourt, the Rivers State capital.
The suspects are: Samuel Ndudiri (said to be the mastermind), Promise Ukwuoma (ex-Sgt), Samuel Nwala, Lucky Ukwuoma and Kaale Taagabah.
Items allegedly recovered from them include: two AK-47 rifles and magazines loaded with ammunition, a welding machine, two gas cylinders and iron cutters, a big chisel, cutting saw, hammer and acetylene gas power.
A statement yesterday in Abuja by Force spokesman Don Awunah, reads: “On December 22, 2016, the five suspects and others still at large stormed a branch of Access Bank in Port Harcourt, relying on information and active involvement of one of the workers of the bank, the robbers successfully broke down the well fortified security doors and barriers and took over the banking hall.
“They were almost pulling down the vault and other strong rooms in the bank with use of gas cylinder, welding machine and iron cutters before the joint police teams of the Inspector-General of Police (IGP) Intelligence Response Team and policemen from Rivers State Police Command swiftly moved in and dislodged them. They foiled the robbery attack on the bank and promptly arrested three of the suspects on the scene.”
The statement added: “In the course of a thorough investigation into the foiled robbery attack on the bank, the principal suspect, who is a worker of the bank and the master mind of the robbery attack, was subsequently arrested, based on the confessional statements volunteered by the last three suspects arrested on the scene.
“The arrest of the principal suspect led to the arrest of Ex-SGT Promise Ukwuoma, who participated actively in the robbery. The two AK-47 rifles and the ammunition were recovered from him.”
The police said the suspects made useful statements to the police about their roles in the alleged crime.
The Force headquarters said the suspects would soon be charged to court after investigation.
It added that efforts were being made to arrest the fleeing suspects.
