Odahiekwu Ogunde
Suspected four-man gang of armed robbers, on Friday, shot dead Mr Emmanuel Omomo, a customer of Guaranty Trust Bank Plc on Sani Abacha Expressway in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State capital, and escaped with his money.
Omomo was said to have gone to the bank as early as 8am to withdraw a huge amount of money.
It was learnt that after he withdrew the money and came out of the banking hall, the customer, who allegedly had arranged a tricycle to pick him, went to meet the tricycle operator to take him to his destination.
It was further learnt that after he went into the tricycle, the suspected robbers, inside a black tinted Toyota Camry car, pulled up and blocked the tricycle he was in.
An eyewitness, who claimed to be in the queue on the bank premises, told our correspondent that after the blockade, the suspected hoodlums ordered Omomo to hand over the ‘Ghana Must Go’ bag containing the money to them.
The eyewitness, who craved anonymity, said the bank customer refused to release the bag containing millions of money, a situation which allegedly infuriated them.
To prove to Omomo that they were not joking, his assailants tried to forcibly take the bag of money from him and in the process, the unyielding customer ran out of the tricycle towards the queue.
The witness said it was at that point that the incensed robbers pursued their victim and pumped a volley of gunshots on him, leading to Omomo falling into a bushy ditch near a road pavement.
The robbers, who were allegedly armed with AK 47 rifles and brandishing multiple magazines, engaged in a shooting spree to scare away other customers queuing on the premises.
After shooting sporadically into the air for some minutes, the sounds of which were heard in adjoining streets of Imgbi, Apex Academy, OMPADEC and Punch Road, the hoodlums escaped uncaught.
When contacted, the Police Public Relations Officer, Bayelsa State Command, Asinim Butswat, said the police authorities in the state had launched a manhunt for the unidentified gunmen, who shot a bank customer in Yenagoa.
He said, “The unfortunate incident occurred on July 3, 2020 at about 1000 hours, on the premises of a new generation bank in Yenagoa, when a customer was accosted by gunmen after he withdrew money.
“The armed robbers, who came in a black Toyota Camry car, accosted the customer, one Emmanuel Omomo ‘m,’ when he came out of the bank after making the withdrawals, shot him, collected all the money in his possession and zoomed off.
“The victim was immediately rushed to the Federal Medical Centre, Yenagoa, where he was confirmed dead.”