Angry residents of Kiong'anyo village in Nyatieko on Tuesday lynched a banana thief.
According to Nyatieko local chief Lawrence Omari, the deceased Samuel Ngare was found in possession of three bananas which he had stolen from a farm in the village and he was on his way to Nyakoe market when he was busted by residents.
"The deceased has been stealing from various farms in the area despite several warnings being issued to him. He was found with the three bananas and upon being questioned by residents where he got them from he could not explain but instead started running away abandoning the bananas," said Omari as reported by Egesa Fm.
He said angered residents chased after him, apprehended and gave him a thorough beating before setting him on fire.
"Police officers from Nyatieko arrived at the scene and found the suspect dead. Cases of theft are at the peak in Nyatieko and I appeal to residents to work hard to eat from their sweat instead of using short cuts to put food on the table," said Omari.
The chief warned residents against taking the law into their hands saying any criminal should be surrendered to police for court processing.
He said the body of the deceased was taken to Kisii Teaching and Referral hospital morgue.