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A suspected motorcycle robber met a gruesome end on Sunday when an enraged mob lynched and set him ablaze near the Prime Power petrol station along Ahmadu Commisii Road in the Demekepke area of Makurdi, the Benue State capital.
According to eyewitness accounts and sources who spoke to Benue Info-pedia, the incident unfolded after the suspect allegedly dispossessed an okada rider, Mr. Onoja Okenddu, of his motorcycle at gunpoint. The robbery took place while Okenddu was conveying the young man as a passenger from Wadata through the NKST sharp bend toward the Modern Market.
Okenddu recounted that he initially stopped for the suspect, believing him to be a churchgoer given it was Sunday. The passenger boarded without speaking and later requested a stop near Demekepke Primary School, claiming he had forgotten something. As soon as the motorcycle halted, the suspect reportedly pulled out a gun, ordered the rider to run, and attempted to ride away with the bike.
“I ran and shouted ‘Thief! Thief!’” Okenddu said. “The people around the petrol station blocked him as he waited for vehicles to pass before entering the main road. Other okada riders were also chasing him.”
The alarm quickly mobilized angry youths in the neighborhood, who gave the suspect a hot chase. He was eventually intercepted close to the Prime Power filling station while attempting to cross the road. Vehicles coming from Ankpka Quarter Junction reportedly blocked his escape route, allowing the mob to close in.
Before a police patrol team from ‘D’ Division could arrive at the scene, the mob allegedly fetched tyres from a nearby vulcaniser’s workshop and set the suspect on fire, burning him beyond recognition.
The motorcycle owner, Mr. Onoja Okenddu, who escaped unhurt, expressed gratitude to God for sparing his life. He revealed that he had acquired the motorcycle through a hire-purchase arrangement in October 2025 for N2 million. Okenddu appealed to the government and security agencies to intensify patrols and surveillance, lamenting that motorcycle thefts at gunpoint continue to occur in broad daylight despite existing restrictions on night operations by commercial riders.
A resident simply identified as Tony described the chase: “After taking the bike, he sped off. The youths who saw what happened chased him. He was caught while trying to cross the road, but vehicles coming from Ankpka Quarter Junction blocked his escape.”
Efforts to obtain a reaction from the Benue State Police Command spokesperson, DSP Udeme Edet, were unsuccessful as calls and text messages sent to her were not returned as at the time of filing this report.
The incident highlights the growing frustration among residents over rising cases of armed robbery, particularly motorcycle snatching, and the resort to jungle justice in the absence of swift security response. It also underscores ongoing challenges in ensuring the safety of commercial motorcyclists and commuters in parts of Makurdi metropolis.
