Bank Cash Officer, Armed Robber Die In Bullion Van Attack

A cash officer in one of the new generation banks located in Aba, the commercial nerve of Abia State whose name cannot be immediately ascertained has reportedly lost his life as armed robbery gang attacked a bullion van conveying undisclosed amount of cash to their branch in Umuahia, the state capital.

The incident which occurred Tuesday afternoon on the Ntigha junction axis of the Enugu-Port Harcourt expressway way also left a member of the armed robbery gang dead.

Other members of the gang was said to have carted away an undisclosed amount of cash from the bullion van.

Parading the corpse of the neutralised robber, the Abia State Police Command Public Relations Officer (PPRO), SP Geoffrey Ogbonna who could not confirm any insider involvement stated that the armed robbers barricaded the expressway where they laid ambush for the bullion van.

According to the PPRO, in an effort to escape, the yet-to-be-identified official of the bank who was escorting the cash was killed on the spot while three police officers were injured.

An AK47 rifle with three loaded magazines strapped were recovered from the robbers.

He said, “Based on a distress call, teams of tactical operatives were dispatched to the scene.

“At the scene, one inspector Leo Francis of CTU (Counter Terrorist Unit) base 4 Aba was met and he stated that he along with five others while escorting a bullion van from Eziukwu streets Aba to Umuahia ran into a gang of armed robbers who had barricaded the high way and were firing sporadically.

“Efforts made to stop the bullion van and escort vehicle yielded no dividend as the driver veered into the bush.

“The cash officer accompanying the bullion van was shot dead on the spot, three policemen on escort sustained bullet injuries while one of the armed robbers was neutralized and his AK 47, rifle with 90 rounds of ammunition was recovered.

“The injured policemen were rushed to the hospital while the deceased are deposited in the morgue for preservation. An investigation has commenced.”

The police spokesman called on Abians to always volunteer information to the police for quick intervention.

He also appealed to hospitals in the state to report anyone in their facilities with bullet wounds for investigation as some of the robbers fled with bullet injuries.