A middle aged man was on Tuesday roughed up by angry residents at the Neissut trading centre after his efforts to snatch a phone from traveler in a traffic snarl up along the Njoro-Neissut road were thwarted.
According to eye witness accounts, the young man who took advantage of the jam as a result of demonstrating residents luckily escaped lynching after police arrived on time.
"He had successfully snatched the phone from a lady seating on the window side of a matatu en route Nairobi but could not escape due to the commotion of the many cars and demonstrating residents," said Maina Munyoki, a witness.
He tried to cross to the other side and escape through the shop corridors at the shopping centre but was apprehended after the lady raised an alarm.
"He was lucky not to be lynched as police arrived on time as the mob was trying to filter petrol from a motorbike to set him ablaze," noted Elijah Rono, who was among the demonstrators.
George Otieno, an AP officer from Neissut AP post advised the residents to always make good use of law enforcers to ensure that crime was dealt with using the relevant clauses as stipulated by the law.
"Mob justice is crime in itself punishable by the law, please lets not take the law in our hands," he advised.
The traffic jam paralysed operations along the road for some time before the officers restored things back to normal.