THE Otukpo Divisional Police Officer, Chief Superintendent of Police (CSP), John Adikwu and three other officers have been confirmed dead by the Benue State police on Saturday, October 21, 2023 during an armed robbery raid on commercial banks in Otukpo town.
Residents of Otukpo were alarmed when the armed robbers broke into some banks on Friday October 20,2023 in the afternoon.
In a statement, the Benue state Police Public Relations Officer (PRO),Catherine Anene, confirmed that five banks were robbed successively.
Anene said that as the criminals were being pursued, security personnel shot and killed two of the armed robbers while they were still pursuing the other thieves who had abandoned their car and fled into the woods along the Otukpo–Taraku axis.
‘On 20/10/2023 at about 1615hrs, armed robbers invaded Access, First, Zenith, UBA and Stanbic bank Otukpo simultaneously.
The Otukpo Divisional Police Officer, CSP. John Adikwu and other Police teams in the area engage them in a gun dwell but were unable to prevent their attack on the banks.
More police teams in collaboration with other security agents have been deployed to Otukpo to assist in stabilising the area and prevent these robbers from escaping.’ Part of the statement read.
Anene added that the DPO who sustained a gunshot injury on his stomach and three other police officers have been confirmed dead at the hospital while other persons who sustained injuries in the bank have been moved to the hospital for treatment.
Although she stated that an inquiry had begun, she remained mute regarding the number of civilians that were slain during the robbery incident.
Meanwhile, the Governor of the state Hyacinth Alia, has condemned the armed robbery attack.
In a statement released by his spokesperson, Tersoo Kula, Alia called the robbery event an insult to the state, noting in particular that it took place at the same time the security council meeting was being held at Government House in Makurdi.
The governor expressed his sympathy to the families of those who had been brutally killed by the culprits during the robbery
‘It is an unfortunate development that people who were on duty, especially police officers, were shot and killed in cold blood by those mindless robbers.
But they cannot get away with this. Already, security agencies are on their trail and must apprehend and bring them to justice’. He said
Alia consequently urged the state’s citizens to exercise vigilance and make every effort to report any suspicious activity going on around them.
Fatimah Quadri is a Journalist and a Fact-checker at The ICIR. She has written news articles, fact-checks, explainers, and media literacy in an effort to combat information disorder.
She can be reached at sunmibola_q on X or fquadri@icirnigeria.org