Mob Lynches Suspected Livestock Thief In Luwero

A man believed to be in his 20s has been lynched by an irate mob  for allegedly stealing two goats and a Sheep in Luwero district.

The incident has occurred at Gavvu village in Kibiriizi Parish in Bamunanika Sub-County. The yet to be identified victim who did not identification documents on him and he was also a stranger in the area, was on Thursday intercepted as he ferried the three animals on a motorcycle at Nkuluze village which shares borders with Kibiriizi.

Residents became suspicious because he had packed the three animals in sacks. The residents first took him to the Kibiriizi village chairman. When they tasked him to prove the animals were his own, he reportedly failed. His behavior according to the locals pointed to theft, although no one had claimed loss of his animals. The locals started beating him before he abandoned the motorcycle and run off.

The angry residents then chased him from Nkuluze village, then through Kibiriizi village, after they managed to surround him at Gavu village. When he was asked why he steals, he responded that he was struggling to make ends meet. The locals severely beat and stoned him on the head.

Smith Nkangi, the Nkuluze village LC 1 Chairman where the interception was first made, recounts the incident to Uganda Radio Network (URN). According to Chairman Nkangi, the interception with the subsequent mob action at Gavu village was prompted by the rampant livestock theft in this Sub-County.

He says recently, seven  goats were stolen from locals something that left them charged against the perpetrators.

Luganda Audio

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When contacted about this incident, Luwero District Police Commander (DPC) Felix Mugizi has told URN that he has been tipped off by area subordinates. By the time of filing this report, DPC Mugizi however, noted that he was yet to secure a comprehensive report from the scene of crime officers. Luganda Audio

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Livestock theft has proven persistent in Greater Luwero region. For instance, in August this year, unidentified thugs stole three cows at gunpoint from a farm belonging to Timothy Mugabi at Kabunyata village in Kamira Sub-County in Luwero district.

Relatedly, in mid-July, this year, a furious mob in Nakaseke district lynched one of the suspected cattle thieves . This was after a gang of seven suspected cattle thieves raided two homes at Lwetunga village in Kapeeka Sub-County.