A gang of armed robbers on Thursday
attacked a branch of Skye Bank Plc in Ifon, the headquarters of the Ose
Local Government Area of Ondo State.....
The robbers killed two policemen attached to the bank and reportedly carted away an undisclosed amount of money.
The incident put a halt to social and
commercial activities in the town for several minutes as residents
living close to the bank ran helter-skelter to safety, while the robbery
operation reportedly lasted for about 40 minutes.
According to an eyewitness, who
declined to be named,the hoodlums numbering 15, stormed the bank at
about 3pm when the branch had stopped transaction with customers.
The robbers were said to have blown up
the bullet-proof door of the bank with a substance suspected to be
dynamite before gaining entrance.
The eyewitness explained that on
entering the banking hall, some of the robbers packed all the money in
the bank’s vault, while others engaged the policemen guarding the bank
in a gun duel.
It was gathered that stray bullets killed a yet-to-be identified man near the bank
The eyewitness said, “They came in three
vehicles; they were up to 15 in number. The were heavily armed. When
they got to the bank, they could not enter because the bank had stopped
attending to customers. So, they blew up the door with dynamite.
“For several minutes, they were shooting
indiscriminately. Two of the policemen that engaged them were killed,
but none of the robbers was killed during the shooting.”
Another source said it was when more policemen, who were deployed in the scene, engaged the robbers that the bandits ran away.
The Police Public Relations Officer in
the state, Mr. Femi Joseph, confirmed the incident and said the command
deployed more officers and men in the scene while another team, led by
the state Commissioner of Police, Mr. Gbenga Adeyanju, went to the area
after receiving the information.
He said, “It is unfortunate that we lost
two of our men in the incident, but we are on the trail of the robbers.
They went to the bank with sophisticated weapons, but our men still
engaged them.
“The CP led the team from Akure to the
scene. It was when they (robbers) knew that we were closing in on them
that they ran away with bullet injuries.
“We shall get them because our men are still on their trail.”
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