‘How I escaped robbery attack’

“WHEN I peeped through my window and saw three young boys unmasked clearing the entrance of my bedroom to gain access to my apartment, I summoned up courage that I should escape before they had their way.”
Those were the words of a robbery victim, names withheld, who escaped through the kitchen of his three-bedroom flat when robbers came calling last week Thursday at Asipa area, Odo-Ona Elewe, Ibadan.
The young man, whose wife and children were not at home at the time of the incident, returned late from his base on Thursday night feeling tired he decided to switch on the generator set to have a feel of fresh air before retiring onto his bedroom.
After taking his bath, he informed Crime & Security that he laid on the sofa watching television when he noticed movement around the generator house.
Despite being tired, the victim who had just taken his bath and was only tying a towel, peeped through the window of the sitting room and saw three men unmasked trying to gain entrance to his apartment. “I didn’t hesitate to wait till they gained entrance as I was sure they were robbers. I quickly picked up a boxer and escaped through the kitchen of my apartment. I ran into a nearby house and hid under a vehicle. I could not move further because one of them laid ambush on the road.
“They ransacked my house and made away with some valuables like two mobile phones, some amount of money.”
While the robbers were operating in his apartment, other occupants of the other three flats were also awake, but could not do anything, Crime & Security learnt. One of them, who spoke under condition of anonymity, informed Crime & Security that she was coming from the toilet when she noticed the movement of the robbers. According to her, “I was coming from the toilet when I noticed the presence of the robbers, I tried to call another neighbour to notify them of the robbers presence, but they didn’t pick their call. Then I resigned to fate and was expecting the worst,” she said.
However, other neighbours were fortunate as the robbers could not visit others before they left.
The vigilance group which tried to attack them had one of their members shot in the leg, as the robbers made to escape.
The case was reported at Orita police station. When contacted, the acting Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), Oyo State Command, Ayodele Lanada confirmed the incident.

Tribune