29th October, 2010
Armed robbers struck yesterday at an old generation bank in Ekpoma, Esan West Local Government in Edo State, during which they killed three policemen and two others.
Among the five victims are the auditor of a bank and a vulcaniser. The robbers stormed the bank situated at Isidahomen junction by Royal Market road, the economic nerve centre of the university town.
The armed robbers were said to have stormed the bank at about 9.30 am. They also shot the branch manager of the bank and he is said to be in critical condition.
A stray bullet was said to have hit a vulcaniser along the Benin-Auchi road after the robbers had completed their operation and shot several times into the air apparently to scare people away.
As a result of the incident, other banks in the entire town closed shop for several hours.
Eye witnesses said the seven robbers stormed the bank in a commando style, gained entrance into the bank and carted away an undisclosed sum running into millions of naira.
They were said to have escaped through Opoji road and drove towards Agbor in Delta State.
“You know that area is the commercial nerve centreof the town and when the robbers stormed the area, there was pandemonium. The policemen tried to resist them that was why they were shot. Of course, the robbers came with superior weapons and for several hours after the incident business came to a halt in the whole area,â€Â an eyewitness said.
However, efforts to get police reaction at the headquarters were unsuccessful as the phone of the state police image maker, Peter Ogboi (ASP) was switched off.
However, a senior police officer confirmed the incident. “We were told that there was a robbery incident in a bank in Ekpoma today and we lost three men in the process,†he told P.M.NEWS.
Meanwhile, the police said they are on the trail of the robbers.
For sometime now the state has been enjoying relative peace but the latest incident has shattered that peace.