KINSHASA – This Thursday morning, the routine at the Victoire roundabout was shattered. Around 9:30 a.m., the sharp crackle of automatic weapons tore through the air, transforming this strategic intersection between Kasa-Vubu and Kalamu into the scene of a violent confrontation.

A group of robbers holed up in a Rawbank branch engaged in a heavy exchange of gunfire. The Rawbank branch was targeted by a group of determined robbers.

According to initial reports, the heavily armed criminals had chosen their target with precision. But their plan was cut short when elements of the Congolese Armed Forces and National Police, quickly alerted, surrounded the area.

The mayor of Kalamu, Charly Luboya, contacted by telephone, confirmed the scenario: "Some fled, one of them was arrested - let's say their driver - and others are being held inside the bank by law enforcement officers."

The palpable tension

Reinforcements quickly arrived. Several police vehicles took up positions around the bank building, while army personnel, in combat gear, deployed methodically. Tensions became palpable in this usually bustling neighborhood. "Bullets continued to rain down on this corner of the capital ," the mayor reported, as hundreds of onlookers, despite the risks, gathered at a distance to witness the assault.

Shortly before 10:30 a.m., after nearly an hour of siege, the professional police force sealed off access to the building. The blue-clad police officers took strategic positions, protected by their armored vehicles, while the soldiers prepared the final assault. Each detonation startled the crowd, which was kept at a safe distance.

The end of hostilities

Rawbank issued an official statement: the security incident is "under control ." The attackers were "neutralized" thanks to the "exemplary responsiveness of the authorities and the coordination of the bank's security teams ." The results are reassuring: "No injuries were reported among the staff or customers present on site."

The bank praised the "professionalism" and "efficiency" of the security forces, while thanking the population for their "calm" and "cooperation ." The perimeter remains temporarily secure, however, while the authorities carry out the usual checks.

This aborted robbery is a testament to the increased insecurity in the Congolese capital, but also to the police's ability to react. As night falls on Kinshasa, the Victoire roundabout gradually returns to calm, marked by the scars of a day that could have turned tragic.