Police give details of how thieves cut fingers, ears of female student over phone

Ishola Michael | Bauchi

The Bauchi State Police Command has confirmed that suspected phone snatchers have inflicted serious injuries on a woman, believed to be a student, while trying to snatch her phone by force.

The Command PPRO, SP Nafiu Habib, confirmed the development in a telephone conversation with Sunday Tribune on Saturday.

He assured that efforts have been intensified to track and apprehend the suspects, retrieve the snatched item and prosecute them after thorough investigations.

The incident occurred on Thursday evening at Gadau, main campus of Bauchi State-owned Sa’adu Zungur University (SAZU), in Itas/Gadau LGA of the state.

Reports from the area revealed that the phone snatchers, numbering four, accosted the woman, identified as Maryam Yakeem, a 200-level student of Biology Education at SAZU, and demanded her phone in an aggressive manner.

While trying to escape from their grips, one of the criminals was said to have brought out a sharp knife and cut off two of her fingers as he forcefully snatched the phone from her.

Not only that, the assailants inflicted deep cuts on her face and a part of her ear was also affected, all in the process of snatching her phone.

Residents of the town have raised concerns over the development, calling on security agencies to rise to the occasion, trace the criminals and get them apprehended without delay.

The residents expressed anger that the criminals have been terrorising innocent citizens unabated in recent times, leading to people living in fear of attack.

Considering that it is a student town, they demanded more security presence in order to protect residents.

As of the time of filing the report, the woman was receiving medical attention at a facility in the town before possible referral.

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Meanwhile, the management of SAZU has reassured the general public, particularly parents and guardians of its students, of adequate security for every student on campus.

It clarified that the incident occurred outside the university environment, contrary to some reports circulating in certain online media platforms suggesting that the attack took place within the university premises.