A scuffle was witnessed in the Kilimani area, Nairobi County on Tuesday morning after a phone snatcher was forced to retreat into a thicket to escape the wrath of an angry mob that had cornered him after he stole a motorist's phone at the Lenana Road Junction along Chaka Road.
The man who was riding a motorbike darted into the thicket, leaving his boda boda lying on the road. The angry residents swiftly pursued, forcing him out of the thicket.
Eyewitnesses at the scene reported that the irate mob, upon smoking him out, descended on him, inflicting serious injuries.
Reports indicate that other boda boda riders present at the scene dismantled his motorbike, dividing the spare parts amongst themselves.
It is yet to be determined if the police rescued the man, from the irate mob who had threatened to lynch him.
The Tuesday morning is not an isolated case, as motorists in Nairobi have raised concerns about unruly individuals masquerading as boda boda riders.
In November 2023, two phone snatchers on a boda boda were attacked by a mob in Lenana, Kilimani after they snatched a phone from a lady.
However, the two were rescued by the police before they were lynched by the public.
In another separate incident along Ngong Road in December 2023, two suspected phone snatchers were lynched to death after they were reportedly caught stealing phones from unsuspecting motorists in traffic.
Boda Boda riders successfully, chased them before descending on them, an attack which resulted in their death.
However, boda boda riders have been under heat, with local authorities cracking down on mob justice occurrences in the country.
This is after Boda boda riders stoned a woman's vehicle in Kitengela after it was involved in several hit and run accidents in the town. The Kajiado county government now requires all the boda boda operators to register with the county to be allowed to operate in the town.
