By Victor Akinkuolie, Ado-Ekiti
A middle-aged man has been apprehended by local hunters and vigilantes at Odo-Ayedun in Ikole Local Government area of Ekiti State, while vandalising electric cable installed in the community.
The suspect whose identity was sketchy at the time of filing this report, was reportedly nabbed in the middle of the night while vandalising a popular electrical transformer installed at the centre of the town.
The local hunters were said to have paraded the suspect half naked and barefooted round the agrarian community with the vandalized electric cable on his head, before they handed hiim over to the police at the divisional police station in the town.
According to a source in the town, the suspect who is from a neighbouring community in Kogi State, sneaked into the community in the middle of the night to vandalize the electric cable installed in the area.
He explained that the town has been in darkness without electricity in the last few months, as a result of the handiwork of the vandals who came into the town sometime last year.
He said shaming the suspect in the public by the members of the vigilante was aimed at deterring potential thieves and demonstrating the community’s commitment to combating crime.
When contacted, a senior police officer at the Odo-Ayedun Divisional Police station, said though he was not authorized to speak on the matter, the suspect is currently in their custody, helping the police to unravel the circumstances that led to the crime.
He said the report of the incident would be forwarded to the appropriate quarters at the Ekiti State police command as soon as investigation is completed on the matter.