A man has escaped death narrowly after angry residents in Ndumberi beat him and almost burnt him for allegedly being a common chicken thief.
The 26-year-old man identified as Daniel Njiri is said to have been caught more than 10 times with stolen chicken. According to residents, he has been stealing chicken from homesteads and selling them at the Kiambu market.
Stella Muthoni, a resident, said that the man was seen last week stealing from a homestead in the area but since it was late at night ,he declined the accusations laid against him. She explained that later last weekend they saw the stolen chicken in the market as he was selling them.
''This has been a habit that he has been engaging for quite a long time now. This morning he was seen sneaking through the fence in a nearby home and walking away with two chicken,'' said Muthoni.
Kiambu OCPD Stephen Ng'etich said that the man was out on bond for a similar case of theft. He explained that despite having the case, he had also been arrested last year for the same.
''This is petty theft that irritates everyone. This grows to major crimes in the area as we have also received cases of stolen cattle. I also want to warn some market traders who buy this stolen livestock from such thieves. They are also criminals,'' said Nge'tich.
He explained that police arrived just on time before the angry mob could burn him. He said the suspect was already in a tyre and could be burnt if the police did not arrive on time. He warned residents against taking law into their own hands as its a crime on its own.