Labone bank incident: Syndicate planned robbery attacks on GCB, Ecobank, Zenith – Police

The Police said a robbery syndicate was preparing to attack GCB Bank, Ecobank and Zenith Bank, all located at Labone, when its operations were foiled.

The clarification follows an earlier Police statement which said a robbery attempt at the GCB Bank, Labone branch, had been foiled, with two suspects killed and another arrested.

GCB Bank subsequently denied that any robbery or attempted robbery had occurred at its Labone branch, saying the branch was never breached and that no customer, staff member, funds or property was affected.

In its latest update on Thursday, August 13, the Police said it received intelligence at about 10:45am that a gang was preparing to attack the three banks.

A police team was immediately deployed to Labone, where the suspects were spotted in two vehicles parked close to the banks.

According to the Police, one of the vehicles sped away after the suspects spotted the officers. The Police pursued the vehicle and arrested one suspect, identified as Augustine Okechuku Maazi, while another occupant escaped.

The occupants of the second vehicle also attempted to flee while firing at the Police, resulting in a shootout in which two suspects were killed.

“Police engaged them in a shoot out resulting in the death of two suspects,” the Police said.

The Police recovered two vehicles in the operation: a Toyota Highlander with registration number GS-1434-18 and a Hyundai Tucson with registration number GS-7915-17. A blow pistol was also recovered.

The arrested suspect, Augustine Okechuku Maazi, is in police custody assisting with investigations.

The bodies of the two deceased suspects have been deposited at the morgue for preservation, identification and autopsy.