Mujeeb Akindoyin
A Nigerian national, Maazi Okechuku Augustine, has been remanded by an Accra Circuit Court in Ghana over an alleged plot to rob three banks in the Labone area of the Ghanaian capital.
Augustine was arrested on Thursday, August 13, after the Ghana Police Service said it foiled an alleged attack on GCB Bank, Ecobank and Zenith Bank branches in the area.
He is expected to appear before the court again on Wednesday.
According to the police, the operation followed intelligence received at about 10:45am that suspected armed robbers were preparing to attack the banks.
The police said its personnel deployed to the area observed suspected members of the gang in vehicles parked around the banks.
It added that one of the vehicles sped away after the occupants allegedly noticed the presence of the police, leading to a chase that ended in Augustine’s arrest, while another occupant escaped.
The police further alleged that occupants of a second vehicle attempted to flee while firing at officers, resulting in a shootout in which two suspects were killed.
Two vehicles, identified as a Toyota Highlander with registration number GS-1434-18 and a Hyundai Tucson with registration number GS 7915-17, were reportedly recovered, alongside a pistol.
However, the police account has been challenged by one of the banks allegedly targeted in the operation.
GCB Bank, in a statement, denied that its Labone branch was robbed or that an attempted robbery occurred on its premises.
The bank said its branch was not breached and that no customer, staff member, money or property was affected.
The conflicting accounts have raised questions over the circumstances surrounding the incident, including whether the suspects were actually preparing to rob the three banks as alleged by the police.
Further questions have also been raised over the identity and history of one of the vehicles reportedly recovered from the suspects.
Checks reportedly indicated that the Toyota Highlander bearing registration number GS 1434 18 had previously been listed by Ghanaian authorities as impounded in 2019, raising questions about the vehicle’s history and the circumstances surrounding the use of the registration number.
The Nigerian High Commission in Ghana has intervened following Augustine’s arrest and the deaths of the two other suspects.
A media coordinator of the commission, Destiny Austine Omon, reportedly questioned aspects of the police account, including the alleged location of the operation, the weapon recovered and the vehicles said to have been used by the suspects.
Omon reportedly described the Labone area as one of the most heavily secured parts of Ghana, noting its proximity to military, presidential and police facilities.
He also questioned whether the recovery of only a pistol was consistent with the scale of the alleged operation.
The President of the All Nigerian Communities in Ghana was also reportedly sent to the Ghana Police Headquarters to seek clarification over Augustine’s arrest and the deaths of the two other suspects.
Despite the questions surrounding the incident, the Ghana Police Service has maintained that its officers foiled a planned attack on the three banks.
With the court remanding Augustine, the Nigerian remains in custody pending his next appearance on Wednesday, while questions surrounding the alleged bank robbery plot and the circumstances of the deaths remain unresolved.
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