A serious drama yesterday occurred at the residence of the former Vice Chancellor of the Federal University of Agriculture, Makurdi, Professor Daniel Uza, where the police held up 10 armed robbers from getting away with their loot. The ensuing drama saw the police condoned off Uza’s residence at the Judges Quarters on Gboko Road in the state capital, at about 12 noon. The robbers were said to have tied the househelp to a pillar in the house while the operation lasted, ransacking everywhere for money and valuable. However, luck ran against the robbers when the house help mysteriously untied himself and escaped to inform both Professor Uza and the police, who immediately surrounded the house. Observing danger, some of the robbers were said to have escaped into the ceiling, while others locked themselves in one of the rooms. Even when the policemen entered the house, they were under instruction by Professor Uza not to break the door where some of the robbers were, because he wanted to be at the scene if he could identify any of the armed robbers. The state Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), Austin Ezeani, confirmed that when the police entered the house, they were being careful not to harm family members. He said the police had to lay siege in the house for the robbers, adding that care was being taken so that the robbers would not escape. According to him, every person held in Professor Uza’s house would be declared hostage. But by 6pm, residents of Judges Quarters, where Senator George Akume and Governor Samuel Ortom reside, had started moving out to safety as it would appear that the robbers were testing the resolve of the police. Indeed, as at press time, the phone of the state Police Commissioner, Hyacinth Dagala, was no longer going through, while that of the PPRO went dead. Residents believed the police and the robbers were waiting for who would fire the first shot, while the robbers in the ceiling could cause a havoc in a shootout with the police.
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