Four coffee thieves have survived being burned to death after they were caught stealing coffee from a coffee grower’s garden in Sembabule district.

This incident happened on October 30, 2024,  at around 4:00 am in Lusalira village, Mitete Sub County, in Semababule district.

The thieves were caught after the renown coffee grower (names withheld) saw them from his house as they were packing all of his coffee in the sacks they had come with, and this prompted him to call some of the locals via his mobile phone for help.

When the locals arrived, they surrounded them without their knowledge and captured them; however, they fought them off and remained with one, who has been identified as Jon Natwijuka, aged 35 years.

In an interview with journalists, one local identified as Bosco Kisitu revealed that these thieves were riding on Bajaj boxer registration number UFK 426V, and it was burned down to ashes by the angry mob.

Kisitu added that the angry mob beat Natwijuka to a pulp; however, as they were going to burn him, police intervened following a tip.

’’This was the third time that these thieves were stealing from this man and from locals in Lusalira village, and that is why the locals were going to burn one of the suspects to teach other thieves a lesson,’’ Kisitu reported.

Hajji Arid Nsubuga, the councillor representing the elderly people at Mitete Sub County Committee, confirmed the incident and said that when the angry mob questioned Natwijuka where they came from, he revealed that they were from Kyabakuza in Masaka City, and that is where they take all the stolen coffee and sell it off.

Hajji Nsubuga also added that Natwijuka confessed to being the owner of the Bajaj boxer motorcycle that the angry mob burned down to ashes.

’’These thieves have forced the locals to spend sleepless nights outside in their coffee gardens in a bid to put a stop to them and their theft,’’ Nsubuga noted.

This incident reflects a broader trend of mob justice in response to theft, as communities become increasingly frustrated with ongoing criminal activities targeting their livelihoods.

For instance, a mob in Bulegeya village, Kyanamukaka subcounty, killed a young man on May 2, 2024, after accusing him of stealing coffee. Residents reportedly beat him to death and left his body by the roadside.