• Suspected motorcycle thief lynched in Benue
An angry crowd yesterday set two suspected armed robbers ablaze at the Refinery Junction in Uvwie Local Government Area of Delta State. An eyewitness, however, told newsmen that a third suspect escaped.
The source said the suspects, who operated in a tricycle, snatched a handbag containing huge sum of money from a teacher, shot and wounded her. The teacher is currently receiving treatment at an undisclosed hospital.
“The suspects had snatched a handbag containing about N200, 000 from the teacher opposite Jowil by Okoloba junction. After snatching the handbag, the assailants went to a bar in Ekpan near the Ekpan Police Station, where they ordered revelers to lie down and dispossessed them of their mobile phones and other personal effects. They were, however, chased by some youths who caught up with them and set them ablaze at Refinery Junction.”
The Delta State police public relations officer, Onome Onovwakpoyeya, confirmed the incident. “It is true that two suspected robbers were set ablaze at Refinery Junction in Effurun,” Onovwakpoyeya said. As at the time of filing this report, there were no guns at the scene of the incident.
MEANWHILE, the Benue State police command yesterday said a middle-aged man was burnt to death by some angry youths while attempting to snatch a motorcycle in Makurdi, the state capital.
The command’s spokesperson, Catherine Anene, disclosed this in an interview with newsmen. Anene, who said the victim was burnt beyond recognition, explained that the motorcyclist overpowered the suspected thief and raised an alarm, prompting youths to rush to the scene, where they set him ablaze.
While condemning the act, the police spokesperson said the identity of the suspected thief could not be ascertained, as he was burnt beyond recognition. Also, an eyewitness who spoke to newsmen said the deceased had shot at the motorcyclist who managed to escape the bullet.
According to eyewitnesses, it was the gunshot that attracted the attention of the youths, most of whom were Okada riders, who gave him a hot chase, caught up with him at Otukpo road, near Hotel Bobec and set him ablaze.
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