BENIN CITY-Some policemen and their family members scampered for safety when armed robbers stormed a densely populated police barracks robbing four occupants of the facility in Benin City.
The four-man gang of robbers who operated with Audi 80 car trailed their victims to Adeyan Police barracks, off Airport Road Benin City, where they allegedly robbed three children of a deceased policeman, who returned home from an outing, about 11:25pm, Wednesday, August 31, 2016.
It was alleged some occupants of the barracks jumped through their windows, hid inside a nearby moat while others hurriedly shut their doors when the mother of the victims raised alarm during the attack.
Sources disclosed that the robbers may have targeted one of her children who returned from abroad recently but lodged in a hotel.
Two of the robbery victims, Uwaifo Blessing and Isaiah Oziengbe said they were driving home with their siblings when they noticed a car following them.
Oziengbe who was wounded on his face by the hoodlums stated that since they were already in the barracks they did not anticipate any attack.
“I saw car with full headlights coming behind us, I thought they were policemen, as I packed to observe, they rounded me up, saying lie down or I will shoot you now.
“They hit bottle on my sister’s head, wounded me on my face and collected our phones.
“After some minutes policemen from Adeyan diversion came and I followed them to the station where I gave statement.
“The IPO was asking me to bring N2,000.00 so that he will use it to send the signal to police headquarters.
“I told him I was going home to collect N1,000.00 that I have but I did not return to the station”. Oziengbe stated.
A man who claimed to be a police residing in the barracks for over a decade said he was not in the barracks that fateful night but was informed of the robbery by his children.
He attributed the incident to indiscipline on the part of the victims who he alleged do not have regards for the rules and regulations of the barracks.
Our investigation revealed that a seven-day ejection notice from the police command, provost office, Benin City dated Thursday, September 1, 2016 has been served on the family.
It was addressed to their late father Sgt Abiodun Uwaifo of block A, Room 3 of the barracks.
Contacted, the Public Relations Officer for Edo State Police Command DSP Theodore Okafor said he had no information regarding the robbery but promised to find out today, Monday, August 5, 2016.
