Thief beaten to death in South Sudan’s Yambio

February 26, 2016 (YAMBIO) – A thief has been beaten to death by angry resident on Friday in Yambio town, Western Equatoria state, after he was caught while trying to steal a bicycle and other valuable items early in the morning in Masia residential area.

Chief inspector of police in Yambio county, Edward Gbaki, said according to investigation report, the suspected thief testified before beaten to death that he actually stole some items and kept in one isolated room and went back to another house to steal more unfortunately. He was caught at 5am with more items and was therefore arrested.

The angry residents gathered around him and started beating him to death. There was no police to rescue him when the residents took the law into their own hands. His body was taken away by the police.

Gbaki told Sudan Tribune that despite efforts by the police to curb crimes in the town, the level of the crimes including theft had continued to rise.

He however acknowledged the successful efforts by the police and security organs in the market places where, he said, there are less reports of theft than in the residential areas.

Police are being accused by the citizens of releasing the thieves a day after their arrest whenever they are handed over to the police, forcing them to take the law into their own hands. But the inspector of police denied the allegation, saying they have procedures to take the accused to court to be prosecuted.

He added that over one hundred criminal cases which were reported to his office last month, majority of the cases were about theft accusations. But many of them, he said, had no evidences to prove that the accused was guilty and were therefore dismissed by court and the accused were released.

Gbaki condemned the killing of the alleged thief, warning the community members in the town not to take the law into their own hands. Nobody was however arrested for the killing of the thief on Friday.

According to some witnesses who refused their identities to be revealed, they said they were tired of thieves all nights knocking doors and breaking into people’s houses while the police were doing nothing to arrest them or imprison them.

“I think this is how we are going to deal with thieves now because we are tired of stealing our properties at night and police is doing nothing to arrest them,” said one resident.

Theft is said to be rampart in Yambio town since the violence broke out in July last year and the community members have resorted to application of mob justice on a suspected thieves.

Thieves, many of whom are armed, rob people at gun point and shoot at those who refuse to comply.

(ST)