Six suspects have been arrested after a mob allegedly lynched two travellers wrongly accused of being kidnappers in Gidan Kalu Village, Birnin Yero District of Igabi Local Government Area of Kaduna State.
The victims, identified as 45-year-old Muhammadu Sani and 40-year-old Aliyu Mohammed, both from Umar Village in Igabi LGA, were reportedly travelling on a motorcycle to Tudun Wada in Zaria on July 1 to visit their sick uncle when they met their tragic end.
According to the Kaduna State Police Command, the men came under suspicion after residents noticed them riding a new motorcycle and raised an alarm, accusing them of being thieves and suspected kidnappers.
The false alarm reportedly triggered panic in the community, forcing the victims to abandon the motorcycle and flee for safety.
However, they were chased by an irate mob, brutally beaten and lynched despite repeatedly insisting they were innocent. Police said some members of the mob were familiar with the victims but still took part in the attack.
Police operatives attached to the Birnin Yero Division responded to a distress call and arrested six suspects in connection with the killing, including one Abdullahi Mukailu Kigo.
The command disclosed that the suspects had confessed to participating in the attack, adding that efforts were ongoing to arrest other fleeing members of the mob.
Reacting to the incident, the Commissioner of Police in Kaduna State, Rabiu Muhammad, condemned the mob action, describing it as barbaric, unlawful and a gross violation of the rule of law.
He assured that everyone found to have participated in the killings would face prosecution.
“The command condemns the incident in the strongest terms. All those found culpable, irrespective of their status, will be arrested and prosecuted in accordance with the law,” the police commissioner said.
Muhammad warned residents against taking the law into their own hands, stressing that criminal allegations should be reported to security agencies for proper investigation.
He reiterated that every suspect remains innocent until proven guilty by a court of competent jurisdiction.
The latest incident comes barely weeks after another mob in Kaduna allegedly beat a woman, Ummulkhairi Usman Aliyu, to death at Maraban Jos over a similar false allegation of kidnapping.
The recurring incidents have heightened concerns over the growing wave of jungle justice in Kaduna State, with security agencies and rights advocates warning that innocent citizens continue to lose their lives to mob violence fuelled by suspicion, misinformation and fear amid the prevailing insecurity.
The police urged residents to remain law-abiding and cooperate with security agencies by reporting suspicious activities rather than resorting to self-help, warning that perpetrators of mob justice would be held accountable.
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