Suspected motorbike thief lynched in Kisumu

A suspected motorbike thief was on Friday lynched by an angry mob at Kibuye market, Kisumu County.

Members of the public descended on the suspected criminal just moments after he attempted to make away with a motorbike belonging to one of the boda boda operators.

According to eyewitnesses, the man tried to steal the bike when the owner of the bike stepped away.

“The owner of the boda boda had left briefly, and the thief saw a window of opportunity. He boarded the bike and started to make his way out. By chance, he was stopped by some men. When cornered him about where he was taking the bike, he claimed to be a passenger,” one eye witness said.

Once he was caught, irate members of the public attacked the suspect, killing him. They said that the  deceased was a notorious motorbike thief, adding that they had been tracking his activities over the past few months.

Speaking to Citizen Digital, members of the public lamented about increasing cases of motorbike theft.

“We have had some cases of people stealing motorbikes from boda boda operators. In December, one thief posed as a passenger and took an operator to a secluded spot where he attacked the boda boda rider. He made away with the bike; we reported the matter to the police and nothing has been  done to date,” one local commented.

The deceased has since been taken to the mortuary at Jaramogi Oginga Odinga Teaching and Refferal Hospital as the police carry out investigations.