Tension has gripped residents of Utako in the Federal Capital Territory after the body of a suspected transformer thief remained unattended on Usman Sariki Crescent following a mob attack on Thursday.
The suspect was reportedly caught vandalising an electricity transformer in the early hours of the day. Witnesses said he was beaten severely by residents and was still alive until about 10 a.m., before going motionless.
Despite repeated distress calls, residents said the FCT Police Command has yet to remove the body. A correspondent who contacted the police emergency lines said officers promised to dispatch operatives but none had arrived as of Thursday evening, even as the body lay in the street under heavy rainfall.
Some residents told reporters that before losing consciousness, the suspect confessed to being part of a gang working for a “cabal” involved in transformer vandalism.
The development has sparked anxiety in the community, with residents expressing concern over both the slow police response and the rising trend of infrastructure vandalism in the area.
