Nigerian held in Ghana for suspected bank robbery plan

A Nigerian man, Okechukwu Augustine, has been held by the Circuit Court in Ghana. He is accused of being part of a plan to rob banks.

Mr Augustine was taken into custody on Monday. He will return to court on Wednesday.

Reports say Mr Augustine was arrested last Thursday. This happened after the police in Ghana stopped a plan to rob three banks: GCB Bank, Ecobank, and Zenith Bank.

The Ghana Police Service (GPS) released a statement on X. They said the plan targeted three bank branches in the Labone area of Accra.

The police got information that the robbers planned to strike at 10:45 am. They quickly sent officers to the scene.

When the police arrived, they saw the robbers' vehicles near the banks. According to the police, one group of robbers fled when they saw the police.

"The Police gave them a chase and arrested suspect Augustine Okechukwu Maazi. The other occupant, however, escaped. The robbers in the second vehicle also tried to escape amidst firing," the GPS stated.

The police said there was a shoot-out, which led to the deaths of two suspects. They also recovered two vehicles: a Toyota Highlander with registration number GS-1434-18 and a Hyundai Tucson with registration number GS 7915-17. They found a blow pistol as well.

The police report faced questions when GCB Bank said its Labone branch was not targeted. The bank also released a statement on X soon after the police announcement.

GCB Bank said, "GCB Bank wishes to clarify that no robbery or attempted robbery took place at our Labone Branch or on the Bank’s premises."

They added, "At no point was the branch breached, and no customer, member of staff, funds or property of the Bank was affected. The Labone Branch remains secure, and customers can continue to conduct their banking transactions with confidence."