Posted by By Chidi Nkwopara on
The serenity of Owerri, Imo State capital, was on Thursday morning, seriously jolted as dare devil-armed robbers, including two ladies, stormed a second generatiion bank along Wetheral Road, and carted away huge sums of money, which ran into millions of Naira.
OWERRI - The serenity of Owerri, Imo State capital, was on Thursday morning, seriously jolted as dare devil-armed robbers, including two ladies, stormed a second generatiion bank along Wetheral Road, and carted away huge sums of money, which ran into millions of Naira.
Vanguard's investigations revealed that the menacing hoodlums who were said to have arrived their prime target, which is a shouting distance away from the state Police Headquarters, Owerri, at about 1.30 a.m, equally operated unhindered until about 4.05 a.m. Some residents of the area, who spoke on grounds of strict anonymity, said the scene was a replica of a serious theatre of war.
"It would not be an exaggeration to say that the armed men were more than 20 in number. They posted their men on sentry, at strategic positions, as well as made sure that intruders were effectively beaten back", one of the residents who identified himself simply as Chima said. He further revealed that stories were making the rounds that "some people were hit by stray bullets fired by the rampaging robbers", but could not immediately tell either the number of victims or their families. According to Chima, "the robbers came with all manner of equipment, including wielding machines", adding that "this made their exploits easier than the bank owners thought".
Speaking also, a lady who identified herself as Miss Chinyere lamented that she was frightened beyond description, throughout the duration of the operation. "When these robbers arrived and fired the initial shots, men of the Power Holding Company of Nigeria withdrew their service, rendering the entire area into pitch darkness. What was more surprising was that the policemen were nowhere to be seen throughout their operation" Chinyere fumed.
She was of the view that "with the way the robbers were armed and planned the attack, they would have been in a solid position to overrun any fortress". Chinyere wondered why "no security personnel challenged them until they satisfied themselves and moved away in a convoy, like they were said to have come".
In his own terse comment, Chief Nwosu said "we do not have security in this state", stressing that "we only have gangsters who collect tolls on our highways". It was not very clear at press time if the invading hoodlums acted on a tip off, even as it was more intriguing what happened to all the security personnel who were supposed to be on duty at the material time.
When Vanguard visited the bank, no business was going on and none of the staff, who summoned courage to come to work, was prepared to talk about the matter. Similarly, there was ample evidence of forcible entry into the building and bullet holes riddled parts of the building, while hundreds of empty bullet shells littered the vicinity.
(Friday), at the Hallmark Bank, Okigwe Road, Owerri, to discuss a number of issues, including ""the fresh but very serious threat"" to their business.