The tranquillity of Mikomfwa Clinic in Luanshya was shattered in the early hours of Saturday when eight robbers raided the health centre and stole K5,600 cash from two nurses and a security guard on duty.
Copperbelt commissioner of police Joyce Kasosa said yesterday that the aggravated robbery happened around 01:00 hours.
Ms Kasosa said the robbers also got away with three cellphones worth over K1,170 belonging to the victims and a Liquid-Crystal Display (LCD) 29-inch television set belonging to Mikomfwa Clinic.
The victims were Nalungwe Lukozyo, 30, a nurse of house number 110, Chisokone Avenue in Luanshya, Annie Lubinda, 45, another nurse of house number Tech 7, TVTC complex and Francis Mulenga, 45, a security guard of house number 4230, Mikomfwa in Luanshya.
“The suspects, who were armed with knives and planks, beat up the nurses and a security guard who were on duty on that particular night and the three victims sustained multiple body injuries,” Ms Kasosa said.
The robbers stole K2,100 cash and a Nokia cellphone worth K700 from Ms Lukozyo; K3,500 cash and a Nokia cell phone worth K400 from Ms Lubinda and a Nokia cellphone worth K70 from Mr Mulenga.
Ms Kasosa has deployed police officers at Mikomfwa Clinic to provide security until further notice.
Police have instituted investigations into the matter but are yet to make arrests.
Ms Kasosa said the victims were taken to Thompson General Hospital where they were treated and discharged.
And narrating the ordeal, Ms Lubinda said the robbers beat up Mr Mulenga, a community guard who offered to guard the health centre in the absence of hired security.
She said one of the robbers entered the clinic on the pretext that he was a patient and that she and Ms Likozyo attended to him before his accomplices stormed the building.
“The bandits came in as normal patients. At first it was one person who came in and told us that he was not feeling well, so my colleague and I started attending to him. Shortly after, we saw the other seven men come in and started ordering us all over the building demanding money from us.
“They beat us and injured us. We were taken to Thompson Hospital for treatment due to the injuries that we sustained as a result of the assault,” Ms Lubinda said.
She explained that she and Ms Lukozyo told the robbers that they did not keep any money for the health centre but they insisted and they ended up surrendering their personal money.
“They ordered us to obey all the instructions they were giving us and told us not to shout for help and that if we screamed for help, they were going to kill us,” Ms Lubinda said.
Zambia Daily Mail