In Port Harcourt, the Rivers State capital, hoodlums destroyed three commercial banks and looted properties in protest of the Central Bank of Nigeria’s naira redesign policy.
According to PUNCH, the affected institutions on Friday afternoon were First Bank in Churchill and Keystone Bank along Aggrey Road, both in the old Port Harcourt Township area of Port Harcourt.
Customers destroyed the First City Monument Bank in Rumuokoro, Obio/Akpor Local Government Area, Rivers State, on Thursday.
Customers were said to have besieged both First Bank and Keystone Bank in protest, but the demonstration was hijacked by hoodlums from the waterfronts who stormed the banks.
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The Automated Teller Machines at First Bank in Churchill were destroyed, and stones were thrown into the premises, destroying several facilities.
Not satisfied with the damage, the hoodlums smashed the bank’s gate and forced their way into the banking hall, forcing bank employees to flee for their lives.
The hoodlums then looted computer monitors, desktops, water dispensers, and other items inside the bank, but they could not find any cash.
Only the two ATMs at the Keystone Bank on Aggrey Road were destroyed.
Markets, shops, boutiques, and business premises hurriedly closed for the day because of the rampage and destruction, while residents ran into their homes and gazed out their windows.
Meanwhile, police have taken control of the entire Old Port Harcourt Township, particularly the Lagos Bus Stop, and Churchill, according to PUNCH.
Three police patrol vans were stationed in front of First Bank to prevent further attacks after it was discovered that the hoodlums had finalized plans to set fire to the bank.
The cops fired intermittently into the air as they pursued the hoodlums into the Abuja, Bishop Johnson, and Ibadan Waterfronts.
Some arrests were made, but the exact number is unknown as of the time of filing this report.
