Kisumu Equity Bank robbery: What we know so far

Police dispatched to Equity Bank on Angawa Avenue in Kisumu after four armed suspected robbers raid the facility at 11am today; siege underway. • At 11am at least four armed robbers gained entry into Equity Bank, Angawa Avenue branch in Kisumu. • Shortly after, they threw a tear gas canister on the floor, forcing some of the clients and staff members to run out. • Eyewitnesses filed a suspected robbery report minutes to 11:30am. • At 11:30am, the first contingent of police officers arrived in four vehicles. • Minutes later, Nyanza Regional Police Commander Karanja Muiruri arrived at the scene. • At noon, more police officers were deployed to the scene, with the total number of officers in operation rising to 30. • Around that time, Angawa Avenue was cordoned off and declared an active crime scene. • A firefighting vehicle was brought to the scene to help neutralise the effect of the teargas that the suspected robbers were hurling while still holed up in the hall. • At 12:30pm, police term the operation as “delicate”, saying firing at the suspected robbers could risk the lives of clients locked up in the hall. • Police claim the suspected robbers were fighting back by firing tear gas canisters and live bullets. • At 12:45pm, police said they suspected some of the robbers were hiding inside the bank’s toilet. • At 12:50pm, police said they were waiting to be given the bank’s architectural plan before they could ambush. • At 1pm, police gained access into the bank's ground and first floors.