Aftermath of bank robbery: Anger, anguish in Ikare-Akoko

The sleepy town of Ikare-Akoko in Akoko South West Local Government Area of Ondo State came under fire on Tuesday, January 13. It was the day some daredevil armed robbers invaded the town and shook the headquarters of the Akoko nation to its foundation.

The sons of the devil mowed down no fewer than 20 residents of the town, including four police officers.
The community has, since the unfortunate incident, been thrown into serious mourning and untold grief, as many families were affected by the unfortunate incident. Those who did not have their relatives killed in the robbery attack had friends and associates injured by the armed robbers. Right now, the entire town still wears a sorrowful look.
The robbers took the people of the town by surprise. It was learnt that they had arrived the town hours before they commenced their dastardly operation that reportedly started at 4.00pm and lasted for close to three hours.
During the operation, huge sums of money were carted away by the armed robbers who stormed a branch of a new generation bank in the town. From there, they moved to the police station located along Owo Road where they attacked the policemen on duty. In the process, they killed four officers and left three severely injured.
At the end of the operation, it was gathered that the robbers killed 15 people, including four policemen. Efforts to apprehend them by both the police and the community’s vigilance group proved abortive.
Since then, more persons have died as a result of injuries they sustained during the robbery, it was gathered.
Sources in the town informed the reporter that the armed robbers, in a well-planned operation, had divided themselves into two groups, with one group blocking the police station along Owo Road while the other attacked their targets along Jubilee Road in the town.
The policemen were killed in their station while trying to mobilise more men to confront the robbers. But other victims of the attack, including a former chairman of the National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW), Mr Kenny Gold, were killed at the scene of the robbery.
Most of the victims, the source said, were killed while trying to withdraw money from the automated teller machine (ATM) placed at the entrance of the bank. Another set of victims, it was learnt, was killed within the bank premises.
The incident, the reporter learnt, was the second within a year. The last robbery, which occurred in the night, had the door of a branch of the bank blown with dynamites. All the banks in the town also closed for days after the incident.
A resident of the town, one Mr. Wale, who volunteered information, said the armed robbers had stationed a group with a military vehicle in front of the police station while another group was ready for action at the bank area along Jubilee Road in the town.
As one of the groups was attacking the bank with dynamites and grenades in order to gain access to the banking hall, Gidado stated that the other group was engaging the policemen who were on duty to prevent them from mobilizing their men to the scene of the crime. Both operations, he said, went on simultaneously in the town as gunshots reverberated throughout the busy Jubilee Road, where the bank is located, and its environs.
Since the incident, members of the community have continued to mourn the brutal killing of the residents who died in the unfortunate incident. They have also vowed to avenge the gruesome killing of their loved ones. As a result of the incident, business and commercial activities have been paralysed in honour of the victims.
The people of the town, who lamented the invasion of the community by armed bandits numbering about 10, also called on the Inspector General of Police, Mr Suleiman Abba, to improve the security of the town. They also plan to employ the services of vigilantes to forestall a recurrence, the reporter was told.
The traditional ruler of the town, Oba Akadiri Momoh, who condemned the incident, urged the police to investigate the robbery that led to the killing of his subjects, just as he urged the security men to ensure that the perpetrators of the dastardly act were brought to book.
The monarch, who said he had met with traditional chiefs in the town on how to ensure adequate security in the community, confirmed that the death toll had risen to over 20. According to him, many of the victims of the robbery attack died after the armed robbers had left the town.
He said since the incident, prominent personalities, including Senator Bode Olajumoke and representatives of the state government who conveyed the condolences of the state Governor, Dr Olusegun Mimiko to the people, had visited the town.
Primary and secondary schools in the town were closed for two days, while all the markets in the town were also shut for two days as a mark of honour for those who lost their lives in the incident.
The community, it was gathered, have concluded plans to employ traditional methods to avenge the evil acts of the robbers. A resident who pleaded anonymity said traditionalists in the town had been meeting on measures to dole out adequate punishment to the yet unknown gunmen.
Meanwhile, the state police command has expressed its readiness to ensure that the robbers were arrested and brought to justice, stressing that the town would not be left in the hands of robbers.
The Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO) in the state, Mr. Wole Ogodo said the police were on the trail of the robbers and would ensure that they did not go scot-free.
He said peace had finally returned to the town, adding that the police officers would continue to ensure adequate security in the town to forestall a breakdown of law and order.
He urged the people of the state and the town in particular to remain calm, noting that the police would ensure that justice was served.