Benin: an alleged robber burned alive in Abomey-Calavi

An alleged robber, apprehended by residents, was burned alive after being accused of attempted armed robbery.

According to initial reports, three armed individuals reportedly targeted a motorcycle taxi driver, whom they seriously injured to seize his motorcycle. Alerted by another motorcycle taxi driver (zémidjan) who witnessed the scene, the villagers mobilized and chased the attackers. Two of them managed to flee, while the third was caught by the crowd.

The suspect, beaten, reportedly admitted to the acts, saying his group, from Sèdjè (commune of Zè), had already carried out two other motorcycle thefts in the Kpanroun area. Tension quickly escalated and the residents, refusing to wait for law enforcement to intervene, chose to take the law into their own hands by beating him and then burning him alive.

The Republican police from the Zinvié station, alerted after the tragedy, went to the scene to establish the facts. But it was already too late: the alleged robber had died.

This latest episode of mob justice once again highlights the frustrations and anger of the population in the face of insecurity, but also the dangerous excesses of such practices. Investigations are expected to continue to identify accomplices still at large.