Angry Mob Burnt Suspected Thief to Death in Ajegunle…

There’s an adage in my local parlance which says that every day is for the thief, but one day is for the owner of the house. Guess, same can be said about the death of a middle aged man who met his untimely death yesterday in Lagos when an angry mob apprehended him and burnt him to death in Ajegunle....

According to reports the suspected thief, (whose name had yet to be known), was burnt to death on Monday for allegedly stealing the brain box of a vehicle in the area.

It was learnt that the death of the suspect, who was reportedly caught while making away with the item, was beaten and injured by the thugs, before they got tyres and set him on fire; has thrown residents of the Isikalu Lane, Olodi-Apapa in the Ajegunle area of Lagos in great shock.

A visit by some newsmen the area of that ugly incident revealed that about four half-burnt truck tyres were seen around the spot where the thief was reportedly lynched.

Although, some of the residents of Isikalu Lane, Olodi-Apapa in the Ajegunle area of Lagos, have come out to deny having any knowledge of the young man’s identity, sources said Police men are still investigating the matter. One of them who spoke on the conditions of anonymity said:

“When I woke up at about 7am, the man had burnt more than halfway. He did not live on this street and nobody knew his identity. He was caught at about 4am, and the people beat him before setting him ablaze”.

Another resident who claimed there has been a high incidence of theft in the area, adding that the hoodlums were enraged and vented their accumulated anger on the suspect.

He said:

“Before that day, thieves had been sneaking into this area to cart away brain boxes of stationary vehicles. “So, they caught this man, and the thugs beat him up mercilessly. They gathered tyres, got petrol and set fire on the suspect. Nobody could stop them.”

The Lagos State Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Patricia Amadin, said men of the Tolu Police Division picked up the corpse of a dismissed naval officer on the street, and not a thief that was set ablaze.

She said, “The dismissed naval officer is Suleiman Abdul. His corpse was found wearing camouflage on the street. Some Good Samaritans alerted the police, who contacted the military authorities.

“Upon search, his identity was revealed as a dismissed naval officer. The cause of his death was still unknown, while his corpse has been deposited in a mortuary.”

-PUNCH