BESUT: A suspected thief was detained by villagers at Kampung Lak Lok here on Thursday after allegedly breaking into a teacher’s house and stealing RM15,000 worth of valuables two days earlier.
The 35-year-old suspect was cornered and overpowered by villagers who had spotted him loitering suspiciously in the area at about 8.10am.
District police chief Superintendent Mohd Zamri Mohd Rowi said the suspect is believed to have ransacked the house two days earlier, and made off with valuables.
For some reason, he returned to the scene.
It is learnt that in a bid to escape from the villagers, the suspect suffered injuries on his head.
"The suspect was involved in a commotion with villagers while trying to escape arrest," Zamri said.
The suspect was then handed over to policemen on duty and taken to the Besut police station.
The case is being investigated under Section 457 of the Penal Code for breaking and entering.
"We believe that he was not alone in committing the crime, thus, we are looking for his accomplice(s) to assist in the probe," Zamri said.