Police officers in Kiambu county have rescued a 23-year-old man from an angry mob after he was allegedly caught attempting to steal a motorcycle from a residential house in Kirigiti area.
The suspect was severely assaulted by residents who descended on him before officers from Kiambu Police Station intervened and rescued him.
Confirming the incident, Kiambu subcounty police Commander Elema Sora said the suspect had broken into a residential building in Kirigiti area.
“It was reported by a resident of Kwa Kambi area within Kirigiti in Kiambu subcounty that while they were sleeping with his roommate in their residential house, they heard a sound of a motorcycle being kick-started,” Sora reported.
The two residents rushed out to find the suspect aboard the motorbike, attempting to flee.
“They rushed out and stopped a person who was on top of a motorcycle trying to escape with the said motorcycle,” the subcounty commander added.
They raised an alarm, and a mob baying for the suspect's blood rushed to the scene, assaulting him severely before officers from Kiambu police station intervened, taking the man into custody.
He was rushed to Kiambu Level 5 Hospital for treatment and discharged in stable condition.
He is expected to be arraigned in court on the offence of theft.
This incident comes amid growing concerns over mob justice in Kiambu county, where suspected criminals have recently been subjected to attacks by members of the public.
In February this year, Interior CS Kipchumba Murkomen revealed that there were at least 845 reported mob justices in the past year.
Of these cases, 579 were fatalities, with 266 injuries.
Murkomen, who tabled the statistics in the Senate, listed leading counties in mob justice cases as: Kiambu (90), followed by Nairobi (85) and Embu (51).
Kiambu County was also leading in the number of fatalities from mob justice at 58 cases, followed by Nairobi (55) and Kisumu (36).
According to the Ministry, the incidents are on the rise because some members of the public perceive investigations and court processes to be slow, ineffective, or biased, a factor fueled by the release of suspects, which prompts communities to take the law into their own hands.
Murkomen said the state is cognizant of this trend and is pushing for the conduct of prompt and thorough investigations to ensure that suspects are arraigned within the prescribed timelines.
“Through structured forums, barazas, Nyumba Kumi meetings, and regular consultative sessions, the Government officials sensitise the public against taking the law into their own hands and encourage the use of established criminal justice mechanisms to address grievances and report offences,” he added.
