Gang targeting people leaving banks on the prowl, cops warn
Gunmen riding on a motorbike shot and seriously injured a man before robbing him of Sh1.1 million in Embakasi, Nairobi, yesterday.
Yesterday’s incident brings to at least four such cases reported in Nairobi alone in the last one week in which about Sh2 million has been stolen.
Embakasi sub-county Police Commander John Nyamu said the victim had withdrawn the cash from Family Bank, Donholm branch and was intercepted by gunmen riding on a motorcycle at the Cabanas stage
“He was shot on the groin and was taken to Mater Hospital where he was admitted in a stable condition,” the police commander said.
Nyamu last evening told People Daily no arrest had been made so far. From the bank, the victim boarded a matatu to Taj Mall where he alighted and took a boda boda to Cabanas to do some transaction near City Cabanas stage on Mombasa Road.
He, however, did not find the people he was to meet. “As he was crossing the road, he was confronted by armed men riding on a motorbike.
They demanded the bag containing the cash but he resisted, prompting the shooting. We are looking for the rider who dropped him at the scene for interrogation,” police said.
Last week, another gang of three men robbed a man Sh414,000 that he had withdrawn from a bank in Utawala, Nairobi.
According to police, the victim, who is an administrator of a computer school in Mihango area had withdrawn the money from a bank and took an Uber back to the school when a car that had been trailing him blocked their way and hijacked them at about 2pm.
The armed men took control of the car and drove towards Karagita area near Nairobi River where they dumped both the driver and the victim before escaping with the money.
In a similar incident, an accountant working at a local academy in Karen escaped being robbed Sh100,000 he had withdrawn from a bank in Galleria mall.
The accountant told police people who had tried to block his way on Bogani Road claimed to be police officers but he drove past their blockade avoiding the robbery.
Police are investigating the latest incidents, with preliminary investigations revealing that it could have been an inside job. Police have now warned members of the public against carrying large sums of money, especially this festive season.
They added this was also the period criminals will target such people, especially those who withdraw large amounts and use public, boda boda or taxis from the banks.
Electronic banking
The National Police Service (NPS) spokesman Bruno Shioso yesterday said people should take personal security and consciousness seriously especially when in charge of large sums.
“Alternatively they should request for security or use other means of transferring money,” he said. The victims are followed from the bank after withdrawals have been made or some are followed to their residences or places of work where they can be easily robbed.
“People should consider options that are lower risk such as carrying less cash and making use of electronic banking like mobile banking and internet transfers, instead. In most robberies, robbers are armed and will resort to violence if the victim resists,” police said.
Most customers feel safe and secure while within the banking halls. But not all customers and bank staff within are genuine, according to the latest reports.
Some of them pose as customers in order to identify customers making huge withdrawals before they alert their accomplices outside the bank. The racket involves bank staff, police and other robbers, according to the police.
Some of these robbers not only have guns but also handcuffs and what are suspected to be a police radio and are said to be using different vehicles.
