Joseph Kipkorir, Bangale Deputy County commissioner, speaking
to the press.
A suspected bodaboda thief was on Tuesday morning burned to death by angry residents of Madogo area, Bangale Sub-county, Tana North Sub-county.
According to eyewitnesses, the suspect, who was not immediately identified, together with his accomplice, attacked Osman Sale at his home in the Adele area as he was preparing to go to the mosque for morning prayers at 4 a.m.
Speaking to the press, Mohammed Abaloni, a village elder, said that his colleague, with whom they were sleeping in the house, fought the attackers and managed to seriously injure one of them on the leg using a spade.
“One of the thieves who was seriously injured using a spade limped to a nearby thicket. Residents managed to follow the trails of blood and found him writhing in pain. It is at this point that he was burnt to death,” Abaloni said.
His colleague, however, managed to escape. Police are in hot pursuit to arrest him.
Meanwhile, the victim is still admitted to the Garissa County Referral Hospital in critical condition with serious stab wounds inflicted by the suspected thieves.
Athman Manyara, a resident, while regretting the turn of events, said that the crime rate in the area has been on the rise in recent times, adding that in the last two months, four people have been killed.
Athman Manyara, a resident, speaking to the press.
Gladys Munani, also a resident, called on the security apparatus to enhance night patrols, saying the area was increasingly becoming insecure, with residents retreating to their homes early for fear of being attacked.
“We have a lot of jobless youth in this area, and they are the genesis of all our problems. Right now, one cannot go about his or her business, especially very early in the morning or late at night, because you will definitely be attacked. The government should find a solution to this problem once and for all,” she said.
Joseph Kipkorir, Bangale Deputy County Commissioner, called on the residents not to take the law into their own hands.
“We want to urge the citizens to stop taking the law into their hands. If they had handed over the suspect to the police, then we would have interrogated him to uncover where the motorcycle was being taken and find out other suspects involved in this,” he added.
He disclosed that the security apparatus was working closely with their counterparts in Bura to unearth a motorbike theft syndicate that he noted was operating in the area.
Mohammed Abaloni, a resident, speaking to the press.
“Preliminary investigations show that the criminals are working with their counterparts in Bura, where they sell the motorbikes after stealing them. We will work closely with fellow security agencies in Bura so that we dismantle this criminal network,” he said.
The incident comes barely a week after two people were killed, one during a robbery and the other in retaliation the following day, sparking inter-community tensions.
Business activity in the town has slowed significantly over the past week, with many traders reporting losses as fear spreads.
