An eight-year-old boy on Friday, August 18, narrowly escaped being lynched by residents of Olola area of Odo-Ona in Ibadan for allegedly stealing plastic materials.
It reportedly took the intervention of some parents to convince the angry residents to release the boy who was accused of stealing the items after searching a compound in the area.
An eyewitness said;
“After some minutes, I saw the boy picking up our plastic buckets, bowls, and other plastic items.
“When I apprehended him, I asked him why he was stealing the items, and he replied that his mother mandated him to go around the neighbourhood to fetch plastic materials to make fire for cooking.
“He said that since her mother could no longer afford to buy gas or charcoal, they had resorted to using plastic materials to ignite fire for cooking.”
It was further learnt that the boy had previously been nabbed stealing plastic items and charcoal in the community.