Police kill robbery suspects in Port Harcourt

Rivers Police Command said its men had shot dead three armed robbery suspects who tried to escape after being arrested in the course of their operation in Eleme.

Mr Ben Ugwuegbulam, the command’s Spokesman, stated this in Port Harcourt on Thursday in a text message he sent to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN).

He said the suspects were initially arrested by the Anti-robbery patrol team in Eleme Local Government.

The spokesman said the patrol team arrested the suspects following a distress call that a gang of the armed robbers had attacked a residential house in Eleme town.

Ugwuegbulam said the patrol team rushed to the scene and intercepted the suspects on a Qlink motorbike as they were speeding out of the building.

The spokesman said that the suspects were searched and one locally-made revolver pistol, .9mm ammunition and one expended bullet shell were recovered from the gang.

Ugwuegbulam said that the anti-robbery team was taking the gang to the police station in their patrol vehicle when they ‘’jumped down from the vehicle.

‘’They were given a hot chase by the patrol team and when it was impossible to re-arrest them, they were fired at to stop them from escaping,’’ he said.

Ugwuegbulam added that the suspects were ‘’fatally wounded in the process.