A SUSPECTED motorcycle thief has reportedly been beaten and set ablaze in Chinade town in Katagum local government of Bauchi State.
The suspect, a middle-aged man whose identity is yet to be known as of the time of filing this report, was first beaten to a pulp before he was later set ablaze by the mob.
Reports from the area revealed that the man had allegedly stolen the motorcycle in Hardawa market and ran away before he was trailed to Chinade, which is not far away from Hardawa but in a different LGA.
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It was gathered that when he was discovered in Chinade, an alarm was raised, which attracted a crowd that later turned into a mob, seized him and beat him up.
Not satisfied with the beating, the mob set him ablaze and watched as he burnt to death.
Meanwhile, the Commissioner of Police, Bauchi State Command, Umar Sanda, condemned the “jungle justice” and described it as “barbaric and dehumanising”.
In a statement on Monday, the Command’s Public Relations Officer, Ahmed Wakil, confirmed the killing of the suspect and said the Commissioner of Police has ordered an immediate investigation into the incident.
“The Commissioner of Police Bauchi State Command (CP) Umar Mamman Sanda has ordered a thorough investigation into the barbaric and dehumanising act of jungle justice meted on the suspect by some irate youths in Chinade.
“While reacting to the ugly incident, the CP frowned at the action of the irate youths, who, instead of taking the suspect to the Police for proper investigation and prosecution, mobbed him to death for allegedly stealing a motorcycle without any recourse to the law.
“CP Umar Sanda described the act as barbaric and inimical to the law governing our dear country and warned Bauchi State indigenes that the Command under his stewardship will not allow some recalcitrants in the society to take the laws into their hands by killing suspects arrested for an alleged crime in such a dehumanising and unlawful manner,” the statement said.
The statement added that the police commissioner further warned that “nobody has the right to treat a suspect in such a barbaric manner” and pointed out that it is wrong for anyone to assume the position of a law enforcement agency.
According to the statement, the CP advised the public that suspects apprehended in connection with any crime should be immediately handed over to the police or any law enforcement agencies saddled with the responsibility of investigating and prosecuting such.
The statement further urged the general public to be calm and assured that the Command would arrest and prosecute those responsible for the mob action.
A reporter with the ICIR
A Journalist with a niche for quality and a promoter of good governance