A suspected thief was lynched by angry residents of Oboutumpan, a farming community in the Suhum Municipality of the Eastern Region.

The suspect, Kweku Attah, who had been identified by community members as a serial thief, met his untimely death after he was caught stealing electrical cables in the early hours of Sunday, July 2.

The unknown vigilantes who caught him subjected him to severe beatings before amputating his wrist. He bled profusely before passing out at the centre of the town, where his body was covered with leaves.

Personnel from the Koforidua Central Police Station, who were informed about the incident, retrieved the suspect’s body to aid with their investigations.

Some community members who spoke to Citi News about the recent incidents of robberies in the area complained bitterly about how thieves had been terrorizing residents. They called on the Ghana Police Service to intensify visibility and also provide the community with a police post.

Meanwhile, the Assemblyman for Nyamekrom Electoral Area, Nana Boaheng Enoch, who described the recent activities of thieves as a nuisance, urged community members not to take the law into their own hands but rather hand over criminals to the police.

“For a couple of months, there has been a rise in robbery incidents in the town,” he said. “This morning, I had a call that a suspected thief had been killed, and so I rushed there. To my dismay, it was true.

“I am worried about the reported cases of robbery in the town, and I advise the youth to desist from such acts to prevent these kinds of unfortunate incidents. I also advise the youth that anytime they catch a thief, they should allow the law to deal with them rather than killing them.”