A mob lynched suspected phone thief on Wednesday in Yenagoa, the Bayelsa State capital.

On Thursday, the police decried the jungle justice and warned residents against taking the law into their hands.

The phone thief met his waterloo when he attempted to dispossess his victim at gunpoint. Angry residents of Green Villa Road in Yenagoa then swooped on him and set him ablaze before the police arrived at the scene.

Some witnesses said police’ delayed response to a distress led to the application of jungle justice.

Reacting to the incident, police spokesman in Bayelsa, SP Asinim Butswat, condemned the lynching and expressed regret that the response team got to the scene when the suspect had been burnt to death.

He urged members of the public to refrain from taking the laws into their hands.

“The Bayelsa Police Command condemns the mob action on a suspected armed robber at Green Villa, Biogbolo, Yenagoa.

“An angry mob chased the suspect, beat him up and burnt him to death before the arrival of the police.

“Police hereby caution members of the public against taking the law into their own hands,’’ Butswat stated.

He added that the investigation was on-going. 

(NAN)