Maputo — Armed thieves raided a bank and an office of the Mozambican electricity company, EDM, in Maputo on Monday, in broad daylight, escaping with large sums of money.

Th first attack took place at about 11.00 against a branch of the Commercial and Investment Bank (BCI) in the central Maputo neighbourhood of Alto Mae.

According to eye-witnesses, the gang consisted of four young men, each armed with an AK-47 assault rifle, and using a grey Honda saloon car as a getaway vehicle. They neutralised the private security guard on duty throwing him out of the building, and seized a sack containing a sum of money. The bank has not announced how much was stolen.

The security guard tried to alert the police. He ran to two policemen stationed at another bank, about 200 metres away. One of the police sprinted across the road, but he was too late - the getaway car already had its doors open, the gang jumped in and the Honda made off at high speed.

At 13.00, the EDM branch in the outer Maputo suburb of Infulene came under attack. This time, according to an EDM press release, the gang consisted of eight men, travelling in two cars. Four of them were armed, two of them with AK-47s.

They overpowered the two security guards on duty, and ordered all the EDM workers and clients present in the branch to lie on the floor.

The gang then stole 214,000 meticais (about 6,100 US dollars) from payments made by EDM clients. They also stole mobile phones and other personal belongings from EDM staff and clients.

A nearby policeman, realising what was happening, reacted to the robbery and there was an exchange of gunfire. Apparently none of the bandits were hit, and they were able to make their getaway.