The clash occurred on Saturday when the gang reportedly engaged policemen in a gun battle in the Ipamesan area of Sango-Ota in the Ado-Odo/Ota Local Government Area of the state.

The Police Public Relations Officer in the state, DSP Abimbola Oyeyemi, disclosed this in a statement on Sunday.

Oyeyemi explained that the Divisional Police Office at the Sango-Ota Divisional Headquarters, CSP Godwin Idehai, received a distress call that robbers were operating in the Ipamesan area.

He added that the police were told that the robbers had already burgled a warehouse in the area.

According to the PPRO, upon the distress call, the DPO quickly mobilised his patrol team and moved to the scene.

The statement said, “On sighting the policemen, the robbers, who had snatched two vehicles from different locations, took to flight but were hotly chased by the policemen.

“On getting to the Joju area and realising the determination of the patrol team to subdue them, they decided to engage the policemen in a gun battle.

“But due to the superior firepower of the policemen, they abandoned the two vehicles, a Lexus RS 330 with number plate FKJ 691 FW snatched from one Dosumu Kazeem, and a Toyota Matrix with number plate MUS 835 FW snatched from one Ibrahim Lateef, and took to their heels.

“It was later discovered that the hoodlums shot a guard attached to a warehouse owned by one Yinka Oduwale before breaking into the said warehouse and looting it.

“The guard was rushed to hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

“Items recovered from them are one long gun, 41 laptops, two DVD players, two phones, three tablet gadgets, one Lexus RS 330 with number plate FKJ 691 FW and Toyota Matrix with number plate MUS 835 FW.”

The PPRO said the Commissioner of Police, Edward Ajogun, had ordered the immediate transfer of the suspect to the state Criminal Investigation and Intelligence Department for discreet investigation.