Armed robbers in Gamawa, BauchiState, north east Nigeriahave blown up a microfinance bank, carting away undisclosed amount of money on Tuesday 16th August.
The incident which happened barely 24 hours after the Police in Maiduguri, Borno State foiled an attempt by the Boko Haram Islamic sect to blow up the Police Headquarters, shocked residents of the quiet Local Government Headquarters town.
The robbers, who also blew up a Police station in their rage, tried to rob another bank but were prevented by the bullet proof door at the entrance of the bank.
Meanwhile innocent pedestrians were injured as the Police engaged the men of the underworld now at large.
Commercial institutions had been the targets of armed robbers in recent times. Recently a bullion bank conveying money to a first generation bank was attacked by armed bandits in Nsukka, Enugu State, eastern Nigeria. Men of the Nigeria Police however engaged the robbers in a gun duel to forestall their operation. Similarly, not too long ago, a commercial bank in Ipaja area ofLagos State was attacked with the use of explosives in the early hours of the day, the incident which interrupted the sleep of residents of the area.
Just about noon on Monday, the Police in Maiduguri gunned down a suicide bomber who attempted to bomb the Police Headquarters. The attacker had crashed his vehicle, loaded with explosives into the gate of the Headquarters.
The State Police Commissioner Simeon Midenda said “the suicide bombing of this Police Headquarters has been narrowly averted by our men and officers and with prayers when the suspected 25-year old suicide bomber crashed in the Police main gate and a tree at12:15p.m.before being shot and killed, while holding the bomb detonating key in his left hand.
Midenda continued that “the Police Headquarters would have been up in flames with many Police officers and men killed, because the Honda vehicle used in the attempted bombing contained seven cylinders of gas, each weighing 3.6kg, two jerry cans (plastic containers) of petrol, a jerry can of gun powder, an air conditioner cylinder and a drum of acid weighing 28kg to rapidly facilitate the detonation and the blowing up of the Police Headquarters into flames”.
Dayo Emmanuel writes for NEWSSCREEN
