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✳ Suspected motorcycle thief Ivan Ogwang alis Ben Otim runs to Police Station to escape mob
Lira, Uganda | AMONY IMMACULATE – URN | For years, a man believed to be Lira’s most notorious thief, has spent all his time avoiding police. Then this week, in order to keep his precious life, he chose to run to the police station as only the keepers of the law could to save him from certain death.
The 30-year-old said to be a habitual thief, was reportedly found with a stolen motorcycle and with just a few moments to being nabbed, and killed, managed to run to Lira Central Police Station before the angry mob could lynch him.
Ivan Ogwang aka Ben Otim ran to police at Lira CPS just as angry residents charged on him after, hey said, he had been found in possession of a stolen motorcycle.
It’s alleged that on February 24, 2021, Ogwang stole the motorcycle from one Emmanuel Omony and started using it. However, two days later, Ogwang was spotted riding the motorcycle within the city where he was nabbed by a mob which got ready to lynch him.
He was saved by police when he ran to their station. The police later charged him under SD Ref: 35/23/2/2021.
James Ekaju, the North Kyoga Regional Police Spokesperson explained that they have evidence that Ogwang is a notorious thief whose luck simply ran out.
Ekaju advised people with motorcycles to be more vigilant as the number of motorcycle thieves is increasing every day.
“If you know you own a motorcycle please take care especially when it comes to night time,” he said. “You can also engrave your names and telephone numbers on the motorcycle because it makes it easy for us to recover.”
He added: “There are even trackers which you can put inside your motorcycle so that when it is stolen we can easily track it.”
According to a police report, a total of 71 cases of motorcycle theft has been registered in Lira City in the months following the relaxation of COVID-19 lockdown.
The data shows that in although in January 2020, 8 cases of motorcycle theft were registered, 7 in February, 5 in March and 4 in April, 17 cases were recorded in September.
The police spokesperson explained that the cases of motorcycles theft rose in the months of August and September because of the relaxation on police operations during curfew.
However Moses Okori, the chairperson Lira United Motorcycles’ Association (LUMBA) said that they have so far lost hundreds of motorcycles after the easing of lockdown.
“It’s true the rate of motorcycle theft is on the rise because in the last one month alone we lost over 100 motorcycles,” he said. “During lock-down, the rate had reduced but after government relaxed the lockdown, the rate has seriously increased.”
He said most of the motorcycles being stolen are from boda boda riders who choose to operate at night instead of day time, citing an incident which happened on December 11, 2020 when a boda-boda cyclist was attacked by iron bar hitman who made off with his motorcycles.
