Hoodlums, yesterday, robbed two new generation banks in Iree, Boripe Local Council of Osun State.
Sources said the heavily armed bandits stormed the community around 3:40 p.m. and raided both financial institutions located around Poly Junction within the town.
They were said to have operated for about 15 minutes unhindered.
Two persons – a student and an indigene – were shot dead while others sustained injuries, as the robbers were escaping from the scene of the incident.
The polytechnic community was tense, as traders and passers-by scampered for safety following the indiscriminate release of gunshots into the air, while the bandits were exiting the area.
The settlement was deserted during and after the robbery.
Eyewitness accounts claimed that the management of the institution hurriedly shut the campus gate for fear of invasion.
One of them told The Guardian that policemen on duty at the nearby police station fled when the robbers arrived.
“It was really a terrible experience in Iree today (yesterday). The robbers are more than five in number and they attacked the two banks simultaneously. We all ran when we started hearing gunshots. The banks are close to Poly Junction and many traders and students trade in this area.
“They robbed the banks for about 15 minutes. They broke the windows and damaged the doors with explosives. Even the officers on duty at Iree Police Station, close to the banks, also allegedly ran for safety. So, the robbers carried out their operations without face-off with any security agent,” a native recounted.
The Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO) in the state, SP Yemisi Opalola, confirmed the development, adding that a team of policemen had been deployed in the community.
Meanwhile, management of the polytechnic debunked speculation that it shut the campus.
A lecturer, Tope Abiola, stressed that since the robbery wasn’t carried out within the school, there was no need to close the tertiary institution.
