Ondo State Police detectives have arrested four more suspects, who allegedly took part in the robbery of a first generation bank in ldoani, Ose local government area of Ondo state where seven persons were killed on Monday.
This is coming as Governor Rotimi Akeredolu, Tuesday, gave a marching order to all security agencies in the state to go after the bandits and ensure their arrest.
Also, all banks in lkare and neighbouring towns closed shop, Tuesday, for fear of another attack leaving their customers stranded.
Seven persons killed include a police inspector and the Vice Principal of Idoani Grammar School Mr Oluloro, who was at ATM point when the robbers blew it open.
Others killed include two bank officials and four customers.
Five others were seriously injured in the robbery operation that lasted over one hour until some soldiers joined forces with the police detectives.
The arrest so far made rose to five just as the state police image maker, Femi Joseph, told Vanguard that the command was on the trail of the other suspects.
Vanguard gathered that the four suspect arrested have been moved to the state police headquarters in Akure for further interrogation.
Reliable police source hinted that the suspect that was arrested during the shootout between security operatives at the scene of the robbery made some confessional statement which led to the arrest of the four suspect.
The four suspects it was gathered have equally made confessional statement and given police detectives lead that would help in apprehending other fleeing suspects.
Sources in the state Police command said two of the four suspects arrested are officials of the bank.
Contacted, Police spokesperson, Femi Joseph, said that the command would not want to disclose the number of suspect arrested but that the command was working assiduously to apprehend the fleeing suspects who robbed the bank and gruesomely murdered six persons.
Joseph appealed against the sighting of banks in isolated areas noting that it was easy for the robbers to operate in the bank on Monday unhindered because of where it was situated.
He said the robbery operation was able to last for long hours because the bank has been overgrown with weeds and located in a border town between Ondo and Edo States territory.
Joseph said the Commissioner of Police and crack team of investigators have moved to Idoani in order to arrest the other fleeing suspects.
Meanwhile, commercial banks in Ikare and some other parts of the area Tuesday closed shop against their customers for fear the unknown.
One of the bank customers, who spoke in confidence, said “we just got to this place this morning, like four banks in this area in Ikare are shut without any explanation from the authorities to customers; No transaction is going on in this bank now”.
The customers called on security agents to beef up security in the area to prevent further bank robbery.
The state governor, Rotimi Akeredolu, Tuesday, paid a condolence visit to Alani of Idoani, Oba Olufemi Olutoye at his palace.
The palace of the traditional ruler is a stone throw to the bank that was robbed on Monday.
Represented by his deputy, Agboola Ajayi, the governor who described the incident as unfortunate implored the “security agents to fish out those who perpetrated the attack on the bank and killed innocent people.
“We are glad that a suspect has been nabbed and I am very sure he will create a channel that will lead to the arrest of those criminals”.
He, however, charged residents of the State to always assist the security operatives by providing useful information to help in reducing crime in the State.
Earlier, Oba Olutoye had said the bandits also came into his compound damaged his door, adding “by the time they gained entrance, they discovered it was a fruitless effort and they left.
Oba Olutoye appealed the State government to assist the family of the bereaved “in order to lessen the burden the incident had caused them.
