By  BARTHOLOMEW MADUKWE

THREE suspected thieves inside a taxi popularly called ‘one-chance’ met their waterloo, weekend, after they were nabbed in Mabushi area of Abuja and tortured by an angry mob who later threw them off a bridge in the FCT, despite the intervention of an SSS agent. According to an eye witness, luck ran out of the suspected thieves as they were moving in a taxi with their victim struggling to attract the attention of passers-bye. Fortunately, curious onlookers noticed the victim and gave the taxi a hot chase till it stopped.

An eyewitness that pleaded anonymity told Crime Alert that, “this happened on Saturday at Mabushi area of the Federal Capital Territory.

Desperate gestures

*The 3 suspects surrounded

The taxi was moving along and someone inside seemed to be panicking and trying to call for attention of people. Passers-by noticed his desperate gestures and gave the taxi a hot chase till it stopped. The victim later explained that when he entered the taxi, the men inside demanded for his phone and the bag he was carrying.

He further said that he surrendered everything to them and while they were taken him to an unknown destination,  he was praying and trying to raise alarm.  He commended the people  that  rescued him because, according to him, they were curious when they saw the way he was looking but could not raise alarm.

Crime Alert gathered that the kidnappers were later dragged out of the vehicle and were seriously beaten to stupor.  One of the suspects reportedly died in the course of the attack. The situation was partially arrested after an operative of the State Secret Service, SSS, decided to handle the matter by taking the suspects into custody.  He handcuffed the two other suspects that were alive.

However, the situation took a dramatic but dangerous angle while the SSS Agent was calling for backup.   Some members of the enraged crowd, in a commando-like, liaised with themselves and suddenly rushed forward, pushing the suspects from the fly-over bridge in other to finish them off like their dead colleague. They survived the fall and the resilient crowd quickly descended the bridge and pounced on the suspects with intent to kill them.

It took time before order was restored and the suspects were handed over to law enforcement agents that arrived the scene.