Offa bank robbery: Governor visits survivors pledges to pay hospital bills

About ten persons were confirmed dead after the Offa bank robbery in Kwara State yesterday, Kwara State Governor, Alhaji Abdulfatah Ahmed visited victims of Offa Bank robbery on admission at General Hospital, Ilorin and pledged to foot medical bills of the injured and hospitalized at the hospital, General Hospital, Offa and UITH, as well as improve government support for security agencies in the state.

Armed robbers had invaded commercial banks in Kwara State town of Offa yesterday. The banks robbed include branches of Guaranty Trust Bank, Eco Bank, First Bank, Union Bank and Zenith Bank.

The Offa bank robbers invaded the town a few minutes past 4 p.m. and shot into the air sporadically to scare away residents and passersby before the operation began.

An eyewitness, who identified herself as Mrs. Tijani, said the thieves came in large numbers and split themselves into teams to carry out the operations in different banks.

Sources in the town said the robbers blew up entrances into the banks with dynamite, before carting away money from the five banks.

Mrs Tijani said:

“They used something like bomb to break into Union Bank,” she said.

Also, a student of Federal Polytechnic Offa, Dennis Ifeoluwa, explained that gunshots and heavy sounds filled the air. Business activities and vehicular movement ceased during the operation.

“I was coming from where I’m undergoing my Industrial Training when these sounds started. I had to hide myself somewhere.”

“After a while they left. Only to discover dead bodies outside. I saw someone’s intestines outside today,” he narrated.

The robbers then invaded the community police station known as Owode Police Station where some police officers and a few civilians were shot dead.

Reacting to the Offa bank robbery, the Kwara State Police Public Relations Officer, Ajayi Okasanmi, told PREMIUM TIMES that the command could not immediately confirm casualty figure.