Police in Katsina state said Thursday they had begun investigating the alleged robbery of N61 million from Aminu Darma, a cashier at the Secretary of State’s office.
Gunmen allegedly attacked Mr Darma, who was carrying three bags filled with N61 million in cash, shot him in the arm and stole the money.
Mr Darma’s friend and former Special Assistant to the Katsina State Governor Maiwada Danmalam announced that Darma was attacked by the gunmen after their attempt to stop his vehicle failed.
The gunmen followed him off the bank, but he didn’t stop when they tried to stop his car at the Katsina Steel Rolling Company roundabout.
He instead decided to return to the city area but they (the gunmen) continued chasing his car.
In the end, he lost control of the car and hit an object which forced him to stop,” he said.
An eyewitness said Mr Darma’s vehicle, a Toyota Corolla, struck another vehicle, a Hilux van, causing it to go off the road.
“I was on the other side when he rammed this Hilux and we thought he was being a little careless because he was speeding until the car, a Toyota Camry, that was chasing him stopped and the gunmen started running into the shooting air,” he said.
Mr Shehu said there were three gunmen.
“They got out of their vehicle, opened the other vehicle and took three sacks of money before going and shooting him in the arm.”
Mr Isa said the command is tired of receiving “cook and bull” stories involving financial officers from the Secretary to the Government of the State office.
The police spokesperson said a colleague of Mr Darma was involved in a similar case.
He said the official withdrew money and left it in the trunk of his vehicle only to report the money has been stolen.
He said the stories coming from the same office were too similar not to raise suspicion.
Mr Isa wondered how an armed robbery attack involving an AK-47 would leave the victim with only “bruises”
“Yes is true. But we are investigating the surrounding circumstance of the alleged attack.
It baffled the command for a state government staff to carry such a huge sum of amount without police escort.
He also suggested that contrary to the story that the robbers shot Mr Darma was shot in his arm, he only sustained minor bruises.
“Also the modus operandi was very suspicious. An attack with AK 47 by real armed robbers may lead to fatal injury and not mere bruises.
We are also investigating why the personnel went alone to pick up the money without any supporting staff and only to be robbed by two gunmen in an ash-coloured Camry.
“He was alleged to have single-handedly withdrawn the sum of sixty-one million naira from the bank.
There is a conspiracy theory we are investigating here,” he said.
