On Thursday the 14th of July 2022, three people including a police officer, were shot when robbers attacked some bank customers along Bank Road in the capital of Abia State, Umahia. The incident happened early in the day.

The robbers, said to have operated in a Toyota Corolla SUV, and fired gun shots in the air, which forced business centers and private offices to close abruptly.

According to Premium Times, the resident of the neighborhood said that there was constant robbery in the area, due to the several commercial banks located there.

The resident also said that when the robbery happened, many people were telling their loved ones to stay away from the area to avoid the possibility of being hit by bullets.

Mr Geoffrey Ogbonna, Abia state police spokes person allegedly confirmed the incident to PREMIUM TIMES.

Geoffrey said that the robbery was done by a three men that are notorious for stalking customers from commercial banks with the intention of robbing them.

Geoffrey also said that no banks were attacked, and the target were not the banks, but rather the customers.

The Abia State police spokesperson, however, said the attack was brought to calm by the police officers on patrol who double crossed the robbers and challenged them in a shoot-out.

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“The armed robbers abandoned their operational vehicle and escaped.

“They snatched another vehicle which aided their escape,” he said.

Mr Geoffrey said that nobody was killed, but that three people, including a police officer, were hit by the bullets.

“To the glory of God, there were no fatalities, even though three people were injured, including one of our men in that team,” Mr Geoffrey said.

Apart from the policeman, the other two victims have been identified as a female health worker, Apollos Theresa, and another woman, Chimuanya Joy.

The police spokesperson said the injured people have been receiving medical treatment in an unknown hospital in Abia State.

The items allegedly recovered by the Police include, an AK-47 rifle, one machete and an abandoned car used by the robbers during the attack.