Snatch suspect gets a dose of street justice
KUCHING: A man who attempted to snatch a wallet from a hawker here ended up with facial injuries after being beaten up when he was caught red-handed by members of the public at Jalan Semarak yesterday.
In the 8.30am incident, the 29year- old man entered an eatery, where he grabbed the wallet that was placed inside a drawer belonging to a trader, who was operating an ‘ayam penyet’ stall there, before running away.
The 53-year- old trader shouted for help, alerting members of the public who immediately chased after and caught the suspect.
District police chief ACP Ng Ah Lek, when contacted, confirmed the case, adding that a patrol team was alerted of the citizens’ arrest at 8.45am.
“When the team arrived at the scene, the public had already apprehended the suspect, who was then brought to the police station for further action,” he said.
The case is being investigated under Section 380 of the Penal Code for theft, which carries a jail term of up to 10 years and fine.
Separately, a car driver suffered severe injuries after he was involved in an accident where his vehicle plunged into a drain at Jalan Datuk Marican Salleh off Jalan Pending, early yesterday.
It is believed that the victim, who was travelling alone, lost control of the vehicle which then veered off the road and crashed into the drain near a former army camp there, at around 1am.
Passers-by came to his aid and contacted the authorities.
Firefighters rushed to the scene and extricate the victim out of the vehicle before rushing him to Sarawak General Hospital, where he was admitted to the Red Zone.