Cable Thief Set Ablaze In A’Ibom As CP Warns Against Jungle Justice

Cable Thief Set Ablaze In A’Ibom As CP Warns Against Jungle Justice

Angry youths of Obot Idim community in Ibesikpo Asutan Local Government Area of Akwa Ibom state on Monday defied Police warning against jungle justice and set a suspected cable thief ablaze.

The incident, it was gathered, occurred in the wee hours of the morning along Aka Nnung Udoe road, few kilometers from Uyo, the state capital.

According to Comrade Efremfon Bassey, a member of the community youths group, “vigilant youths of the area had laid ambush and kept vigil for the thieves due to incessant vandalization of electric cables”.

“Stealing of armoured cables around these neighbourhoods have become a recurrent problem forcing frequent power outage. We could stay for months without electricity because of the cable vandals.

“Each time we report the matter to the Port Harcourt Electricity Distribution Company (PHEDC), which Akwa Ibom is a part, they would ask us to contribute money since we cannot protect power facilities in our area.

“So, we had to form ourselves into a vigilance group to keep vigil against the vandals, and lucky for us, today (Easter Monday), God showed us that Jesus Christ did not die in vain by answering our prayers.

“They (the thieves) came as a group with all the implements to vandalise the cables, were lucky to have caught up with one, while others fled. We immediately set him on fire this early morning before Police could come for rescue, because the Police are in the habits of collecting bribes to release criminal suspects”, he explained.

However, following series of extra-judicial killings of criminals on the metropolis in the recent times, the Commissioner of Police (CP), Mr. Amiengheme Andrew, has warned the youths against administration of jungle justice on criminal elements.