English
Kinyarwanda
On November 20 at about 4 am, Ezechiel Munyaneza, a commercial motorcyclist in City of Kigali transported a passenger to Gitega Sector in Nyarugenge District; little did he know that the passenger was a thief luring him into the trap to steal his motorcycle.
On arrival at the destination in Gitega, the passenger identified as Jean Claude Bizimana, 28, got off the motorcycle and started assaulting Munyaneza demanding to surrender his motorcycle.
In the process of fighting back and making an alarm for help, residents in the neighbourhood got out of their beds and saved Munyaneza, who was at the time bleeding, and apprehended Bizimana before he could flee with the motorcycle.
Residents called the Police, which took up the case and took Bizimana into custody on charges of “theft with violence.”
Theft with violence under article 302 of the penal code is punishable with an imprisonment of between three and five years.
“We commend the quick response of the residents; that’s the spirit of community policing and neighbourhood watch,” Supt. Emmanuel Hitayezu, Police spokesperson for the City of Kigali, said.
“The residents acted appropriately to save the motorcyclist, preventing theft but also apprehending the suspect without taking the law in their hands to assault him, which is a crime itself,” he added.
He appealed to the general public to always look out for each other and called Police immediately whenever they witness or suspect criminal or unlawful acts.
