The timely intervention of the Assemblyman of Lamshegu in the Tamale Metropolis saved a suspected motorbike thief only identified as Shiraj from being lynched by angry residents after a failed attempt to steal a motorbike belonging to a hairdresser.

Residents in the area complained of incessant mysterious disappearance of a number motorbikes wondering who could be behind such criminal acts and therefore devised various tactics to unravel the mystery.

Late Tuesday afternoon, the suspect, in his early 30s, went to a nearby hair dressing salon under the pretext of looking for direction to a particular house.

On his way, he noticed that a “Mapouka” motorbike had been parked under a tree purportedly out of sight of onlookers which he jumped on, started and sped off.

The youth, who had planted the bike in their desperation to arrest motorbike thieves in the area, gave him a hot chase after monitoring his actions closely.

He was later arrested and was beaten to a pulp as more residents came out with life-threatening objects and descended on him in attempts to kill him but for the intervention of the assemblyman who whisked him in his car to the police station.

The suspect, bleeding profusely, admitted committing the offence in his caution statement at the police station and pleaded for leniency but the police would not take that.

According the investigator in the case, the suspect who suffered multiple wounds on the head would be taken to the Tamale Teaching Hospital for medical attention after which he would officially be charged for stealing.

The police took the opportunity to advise residents to hand over suspected criminals to them instead of taking the law into their own hands by attempting to lynch them at the least instance.

Meanwhile, the stolen motorbike has been returned to its owner.