Suspected conman punished by Nyeri residents
Nyeri residents accompany a man, who allegedly conned people and stole their money, as he pulls a stone around the town centre on January 27, 2015. PHOTO | JOSEPH KANYI |
What you need to know:
- He was chained to a cart and forced to wheel a stone around town.
- The conman was accused of deceiving people that he could double or triple their money.
A suspected conman caught in Nyeri town on Tuesday morning was given an unusual punishment intended to serve as a warning to other conmen.
The middle-aged man was chained to a cart loaded with a large stone and forced to wheel it around the town centre, causing a spectacle as motorists slowed down to observe the man on Gakere Road and Kimathi Street.
The punishment was contrary to mob justice where crowds lynch suspected thieves when caught.
The conman was accused of deceiving people that he could double or triple their money.
A large group of young people followed the man, chanting anti-theft songs. Some interrogated him while roughing him up, demanding he name his accomplices.
The alleged conman is beaten by residents. He was later arrested by AP officers. PHOTO | JOSEPH KANYI | NATION MEDIA GROUP
'FORCED TO CON'
The suspect cited unemployment as the reason he stole from people.
“I don’t have a job. Neither do I have relatives. I am forced to con in order to live,” he claimed, pleading with the crowd to forgive him and let him go promising to reform.
The crowd dismissed the man's pleas, alleging he had stolen school fees which they said was difficult to find in January.
The suspect confessed to have stolen Sh15,000 on Monday from a secondary school student, convincing him that he could double the amount.
“I handed them the money and within seconds, I could not believe my eyes when they escaped,” the Form Two student recalled.
But the learner, a resident of Majengo, trailed him assisted by area youths and after an intensive manhunt managed to arrest the suspect on Tuesday morning.
The suspect, however could not produce the money he had stolen, much to the anger of the residents who opted to take matters into their own hands.
“Reporting to the police will not help us. After a few days in a cell, police will release them upon which they go back to the conning business,” said Paul Kinyua, a resident of Kiawara.
The suspected conman was later rescued by AP officers on patrol, after several hours of pushing the cart. They took him to Nyeri Police Station, much to his relief.
