Two banks along Digo Road in Mombasa were on Wednesday, September 22, forced to shut down after a suspected robber hid in one of the facilities.

The suspect is alleged to have grabbed a handbag from a woman in Mombasa town, run, and hid in one of the nearby banks after an irate crowd went after him. 

A multitude of people baying for the suspect’s blood pitched camp outside the bank, forcing the facility and that adjacent to it, to close its doors.

Security detail attached to the two banks had to call for reinforcement in a bid to disperse the crowd.”The man approached me and requested that I help him with some money. Minutes later, however, a man standing beside me informed me that the suspect had stolen my pouch bag.”

“I had Ksh4,500, my bank cards and a bunch of keys in that bag,” Ramla Mghenyi, the victim told the media.

Residents lamented that cases of theft had become rampant in the area and called upon the government to help bring the perpetrators to book.

“We have no peace and we are asking the government to come to our aid. Imagine if such a thief had weapons, he would have probably used on innocent people,” Mghenyi continued.

Moments later, the suspect was flushed out of the bank by the police and taken to the Central Police Station in Mombasa, awaiting arraignment.

Police in the area urged residents to report such cases and not take matters into their own hands.