A landlord, Obong Ete, was severely beaten by tenants and neighbors for allegedly robbing them.
The incident, which occured in Calabar South, Cross River State, involving horse whips, canes, and planks, took place on Sunday as residents prepared for church services.
Residents reported that Obong Ete, a 30-year-old bachelor, frequently terrorized them at night.
One neighbor, John Akpan, claimed that despite being a landlord, Ete would steal food items like bunches of bananas and other valuables from his neighbors, leaving them feeling unsafe in their own homes.
“Obong Ete has been doing this for a long time. It is good that he is again publicly disgraced. He doesn’t want to repent. Many times, youth leaders and vigilante groups have traced stolen items to his apartment, and beaten him up”, Akpan narrated.
A tenant, Magdalene Effiom, said “We learnt from his family people that he once stole from a church, and worshippers laid curses on him. Perhaps these curses are affecting him.
“Other neighbours whom he has burgled their homes have also been cursing him, too.”
After the brutal beatings, local youth leaders compelled Obong Ete to take an oath promising he would stop robbing and terrorizing his tenants and neighbors. This was not the first time he had been handed over to the divisional police officer at the Mbukpa station for his actions.
Brutalized landlord Obong Ete expressed remorse, stating, “I am sorry for stealing. I swear that I will not continue to steal again,” and agreed to face consequences if he relapsed.
The youth leaders suspected a young man living with him as an accomplice, forcibly evicting him with a warning against returning to the community.
Police PRO Irene Ugbo condemned the violence, advising that such incidents should be reported to law enforcement instead of resorting to mob justice.
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