Osun State: Policeman killed, others injured as robbers raid 4 banks

OSOGBO — A police officer simply identified as Atama was Thursday, shot dead in a 30-minute bank robbery operations in Iwo, headquarters of  Iwo Local Government Area of Osun State, while four other persons sustained various degrees of injuries.

The bandits stormed the banks located close to the Bowen University, Iwo, in three vehicles at about 9.50 a.m.

An eye witness account said the robbers shot sporadically into the air on arrival to scare people away after which they split into five different gangs to attack the four banks while the remaining gang attacked the Secretariat of Iwo, Ayedire and Ola-oluwa branch of the Nigeria Patents and Medicine Dealers Association, NPMDA.

The four banks were attacked simultaneously with explosives to gain entrance.

They were said to have carted away millions of Naira from the customers and officials of the banks.

The NPMDA Secretariat was said to be the target of the gang because of its strategic location coupled with the knowledge that it is a hide-out for security men attached to the banks.

According to the Chairman of NPMDA in Iwo, Mr. Lukman Hussen, members were saved from bloodbath because they only hold their meetings at the Secretariat on Fridays.

Panic was said to have gripped staff and students of Bowen University, located a few metres to the banks when they heard of the explosion at the banks, especially the insinuations that the Boko Haram sect was planning to launch an attack on the university.

No sooner had the explosion went off that students started sending text messages to their parents and guardians on the attack by members of Boko Haram sect on the institution thereby creating anxiety among stakeholders of the University.

It was gathered that the Divisional Police Officer and the Head of Mobile Unit of the Osun State Police Command held a closed door security meeting at the Iwo Divisional Police station.

The Osun State Commissioner of Police, Mr. Solomon Olusegun who confirmed the robbery attack said that the command was on top of the situation.

____________________

BY GBENGA OLARINOYE 

Source: Vanguard