South Sudan police shot and killed five armed robbers during a shootout near the central bank in Juba on Friday.
The police closed in on the gang outside the central bank after they robbed money at Hai Tijariya.
In a statement, Police Spokesperson Major General Daniel Justin said: “Five armed robbers, all South Sudanese nationals, were shot and killed in an exchange of fire with members of the police near the central bank this afternoon.”
Daniel has denied reports of a robbery attempt at the Central Bank of South Sudan.
“What happened is that a robbery incident happened at around 3 pm near the Ministry of Petroleum at Hai Tijariya, where robbers broke into a car and stole money. So when the incident was reported to the police, the robbers were identified later.”
“The robbers’ car was followed by the police as it was moving towards Juba Market, and when they reached the central bank, the robbers started opening fire at our forces when our forces tried to apprehend them,” he added.
The police officer confirmed that the five robbers were shot and killed during an exchange of fire and that the situation returned to normal.
“The government institutions are safe, and the incident had nothing to do with the central bank. What happened is that the incident happened near the central bank. So what circulated on social media that there was a robbery at the bank is untrue,” Daniel said.
“We want to inform the public that the situation is calm because citizens panicked during the shooting and did not understand what was happening,” he concluded.