Offa Bank Robbery: Hotel proprietor, staff, guests in trouble
The Kwara State police has arraigned the first set of suspects in the brutal bank robbery incident that claimed the lives of at least 20 people in Offa two weeks ago.
The armed robbers were said to have lodged at one Xontec Hotel on Igosun Road, Offa shortly before the coordinated robbery attack was executed.
One Mr. Kadir Surajudeen, the hotel’s proprietor, was arraigned along with other members of staff before a Magistrate’s Court in Ilorin for allegedly failing to provide the police with substantial information on the robbers.
The staff members of the hotel who were arraigned with Surajudeen included the accountant, receptionist, room keeper and clubhouse operator.
Four guests who were said to have lodged at the hotel around the same time as the robbers were also arraigned before the court.
The charges preferred against Surajudeen and his staff were criminal conspiracy and causing disappearance of evidence, including giving false information to screen an offender.
The charge read, “On April 6, a team of operatives on investigation into the armed robbery attack extended their investigation based on intelligence gathering to the hotel on Igosun Road in Offa with a view to securing information that could assist discreet investigation into the crime.
“The hotel staff could not, however, satisfactorily give account of questionable lodgers in their hotel prior to the robbery by their failure to maintain or keep proper official lodger register expected to be presented to the police and other law enforcement agencies on demand.
“Others found in the hotel during the investigation failed to give credible information to the police operatives to assist in the investigation concerning their observation in the hotel within the period in question.”
The Magistrate, Mrs. M.B. Folorunso, granted Surajudeen and others bail in the sum of N200,000 each with two sureties each in like sum and adjourned the case till May 3 for mention.
