Suspected robbers on Wednesday attacked some workers of the Delta Broadcasting Service, Warri, and carted away about N1.6m meant for the payment of salaries of casual workers and security personnel of the station.
It was gathered that the incident happened on Energy Road, near Ogunu Bridge, at about 2.45pm, while the workers were returning from a new generation bank where they had gone to withdraw the money.
The three workers were in a Hyundai vehicle belonging to one of them, when the robbers struck. The hoodlums, who were said to have put on military caps, struck when the workers were going back to the station located along the Warri-NPA Expressway.
The robbers reportedly threatened to kill them if they refused to surrender the money. DBS, operator of Delta Rainbow Television and Melody FM, has been struggling to beam activities in recent past due to in-house politics and theft of some major equipment, including the Outside Broadcast (OB) Van. It was gathered that the victims had withdrew N1.905m, but the gunmen only made away with N1.505.
An employee of the station, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said no casualty was recorded during the attack. The Chairman of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), Warri DBS chapel, declined comment when contacted. The General Manager of the station, Mr. Tunde Omonode, confirmed the incident.
He said, “They (victims) came to the office and gave the report. We reported to the police, who invited them to give their statements. The matter is now with the police.” Although, a senior police officer at the Warri Area Command confirmed the incident, the acting Public Relations Officer, DSP Andrew Aniamaka, claimed not to be aware of the attack.