A 32-year-old mobile money agent is battling for his life after he was shot in the stomach by armed robbers who made away with an unspecified amount of money at Militia Junction in Agona Swedru in the Central Region on Sunday night.
The victim, Eric Barns, sustained gunshot wounds during the attack and is currently receiving treatment at the Cape Coast Teaching Hospital after being referred from the Agona Swedru Municipal Hospital.
The incident has heightened fears among residents and mobile money operators in Agona Swedru, who continue to face increasing attacks by armed criminals.
According to the Central Regional Police Command, the robbery occurred at about 7:40 p.m. when armed men attacked the mobile money agent at his shop, robbed him of his cash and shot him before fleeing into a nearby bush.
A statement signed by the Central Regional Police Public Relations Officer, Chief Inspector Isaac Evans Ettie, said the police received a distress call and immediately dispatched a team of officers to the scene.
However, by the time the officers arrived, the suspects had escaped into the bush.
The statement said the police, with the assistance of residents, mounted a search and combed the area in an attempt to arrest the robbers, but they managed to evade capture.
Preliminary investigations established that the victim was attacked while operating his mobile money business and was shot during the robbery.
He was rushed to the Agona Swedru Municipal Hospital, where doctors attended to him.
The police said officers later visited the hospital and found Barns in the emergency theatre with a gunshot wound to the upper left side of his abdomen.
Medical examination, including an X-ray, revealed that bullets were lodged in his abdominal cavity, necessitating his referral to the Cape Coast Teaching Hospital for specialist treatment.
The Central Regional Police Command has assured the public that it is pursuing all available leads to arrest the perpetrators.
The police have also appealed to members of the public with information that could assist investigations to volunteer it to help track down the suspects.
