A Nigerian national, Augustine Okechuku Maazi, has been arraigned before Circuit Court 8 in Accra, Ghana, over an alleged plan to rob three banks in the Labone area of the capital.
Maazi was arrested on Thursday, August 13, 2026, during a police operation that reportedly disrupted the alleged robbery plot. Two other suspects were killed in a gun battle with the police, while another suspect reportedly escaped.
The case has, however, sparked controversy following conflicting accounts of what happened. While the Ghana Police Service said it intercepted a gang preparing to attack GCB Bank, Ecobank and Zenith Bank in Labone, GCB Bank denied that its branch was attacked or targeted.
Police said they received intelligence around 10:45 a.m. that a group was preparing to carry out attacks on the three banks. Officers subsequently deployed to the area and allegedly spotted suspected gang members in vehicles parked close to the financial institutions.
According to the police, one of the vehicles attempted to escape after its occupants noticed the officers. The vehicle was pursued, leading to Maazi’s arrest, while another occupant reportedly fled.
The occupants of a second vehicle were also said to have opened fire while attempting to escape, prompting police officers to return fire. Two suspects were reportedly killed during the exchange.
The police said they recovered two vehicles — a Toyota Highlander with registration number GS-1434-18 and a Hyundai Tucson registered as GS 7915-17 — as well as a blow pistol.
However, GCB Bank rejected claims that its Labone branch had been attacked or was the subject of an attempted robbery.
“GCB Bank wishes to clarify that no robbery or attempted robbery took place at our Labone Branch or on the Bank’s premises,” the bank said.
The bank further stated: “At no point was the branch breached, and no customer, member of staff, funds or property of the Bank was affected.”
The conflicting narratives have consequently raised questions about the exact circumstances surrounding the incident and the police’s allegation that the suspects were preparing to attack the three banks.
Additional questions were raised over the Toyota Highlander reportedly recovered by the police. Checks by SaharaReporters indicated that the same registration number, GS 1434 18, had previously been listed by Ghanaian authorities as belonging to a vehicle impounded in 2019.
The apparent recurrence of the registration number has prompted further scrutiny of the vehicle’s history and the police account.
The development has also attracted the attention of the Nigerian High Commission in Ghana. The President of All Nigerian Communities in Ghana was reportedly dispatched to Ghana Police Headquarters to seek clarification over Maazi’s arrest and the deaths of the two other suspects.
Destiny Austine Omon, media coordinator of the Nigerian High Commission in Ghana, also raised questions about elements of the police account, including the location of the alleged operation, the weapon reportedly recovered and the vehicles said to have been used.
“The environment where the robbery took place is one of the safest environments in Ghana. It is close to 37 Military Base, the Ghanian Presidency, police headquarters and cantonment,” Omon told SaharaReporters.
He added: “It does not add up for armed robbers wanting to do that scale of attack to be arrested with only a pistol.”
Despite the controversy, the Ghana Police Service has maintained that its officers successfully foiled a planned attack on the three banks.
Investigations are continuing to establish the identities and alleged roles of the two deceased suspects, locate the fleeing suspect and determine what actually transpired during the operation.
