Three banks were attacked in Ankpa, a town and one of the state's local government areas, according to police authorities in Kogi.
Mr. William Aya, the state's police public relations officer, said in a statement late on Tuesday that simultaneous raids were conducted on the Ankpa branches of UBA, First Bank, and Zenith Bank.
“The Commissioner of Police, Kogi State Police Command CP Edward Egbuka, psc immediately led a team of tactical operatives to the scenes for on-the-spot assessment and has equally ordered the deployment of additional operational assets consisting of operatives of the Police Mobile Force, Counter Terrorism Unit, Quick Response Unit, State Intelligence Bureau in synergy with other security agencies to restore normalcy in the area,” he said.
On Tuesday afternoon, the gunmen allegedly rushed Ankpa in huge numbers, sending terrified locals fleeing for cover.
The armed bandits reportedly raided the banks over a period of many hours without any assistance from security personnel.
A student from Kogi State University was believed to have been shot dead while using an automated teller machine at one of the banks while they reportedly proceeded from one bank to another and fled the town in gunfire shells (ATM).
Aya gave a different description of the presence of the security personnel even though he did not mention whether anyone was killed or hurt during the operation.
“The police personnel on duty both at the station and the banks quickly recovered from the sudden attack and gallantly repelled the attackers who were forced to flee – some into nearby bushes, others with their vehicles,” he said. “The hoodlums abandoned three vehicles used for the operation in their haste to escape, some of them with bullet wounds.
“The CP use this medium to call on the people of Ankpa and its adjoining communities to be on the lookout and report anybody seen with bullet wounds to the Police or any other security Forces nearest to them.”
The police commissioner, according to its Aya, is committed to working in synergy with other security agencies and patriotic stakeholders in the onslaught against crimes and criminality to make the state a safe and secure place for all and sundry.
He also tasked the Deputy Commissioner of Police in charge of the Investigation Department (SCID) to commence investigations into the remote and immediate cause of the incident, as well as trail the hoodlums with a view to apprehend and bring them to book.
Egbuka appealed to residents to go about their lawful businesses and continue to support the police and other security agencies with credible and timely information on the activities of criminal elements in their environs.