The Kaduna State Police Command has arrested six suspects over the mob killing of two travellers who were wrongly accused of being kidnappers and motorcycle thieves at Gidan Kalu village in Birnin Yero, a few kilometres from Maraban Jos.
The command said the incident occurred on July 1 when Muhammadu Sani, 45, and his friend, Aliyu Mohammed, 40, both from Umar village in Igabi Local Government Area, were travelling on a motorcycle to Tudun Wada, Zaria, to visit a sick relative.
In a statement by the command’s Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Mansir Hassan, he said the victims were attacked after some residents became suspicious on seeing them riding a new motorcycle and raised an alarm, shouting “thieves.”
He said the two men abandoned the motorcycle and fled for safety but were chased by an angry mob, who lynched them despite their explanations that they were innocent. He added that some of the attackers were said to know the victims personally.
The police said operatives from the Birnin Yero Division responded promptly after receiving the report and arrested Abdullahi Mukailu Kigo and five others in connection with the incident.
“The suspects confessed to the crime and are currently in police custody, while investigation is ongoing to identify and arrest other persons involved in the unlawful killing,” the statement said.
The Commissioner of Police, Rabiu Muhammad, condemned the killings, describing the action as barbaric and unlawful.
He warned residents against taking the law into their own hands, stressing that anyone involved in jungle justice would be arrested and prosecuted regardless of status.
The police commissioner also reminded the public that every suspect is presumed innocent until proven guilty by a court of law and urged residents to report suspected criminals to security agencies instead of resorting to mob action.