‘I hit him with plank three times’— Suspects recount roles in mob killing of UniJos graduate over missing iPhone

Four suspects have confessed to their roles in the mob killing of University of Jos graduate Ibrahim Pilasar Mbaya, who was accused of stealing an iPhone 12, with the prime suspect admitting to striking him three times with a wooden plank.

The prime suspect in the alleged mob killing of University of Jos graduate, Ibrahim Pilasar Mbaya, popularly known as Ibee, has admitted striking the deceased three times with a wooden plank, as four suspects recounted their alleged roles during police interrogation over the incident that has sparked outrage across the country.

The Punch reports that the suspects spoke during an interrogation by the Plateau State Police Command’s Police Public Relations Officer, SP Alfred Alobo, in a video shared by Manari TV on Tuesday.

Mbaya, a Political Science graduate awaiting mobilisation for the National Youth Service Corps, allegedly died after being accused of stealing an iPhone 12.

Speaking first, Emmanuel Newyear, 30, earlier identified as the principal suspect captured assaulting the deceased in a viral video, admitted, “I was the one that hit him with the plank three times,” claiming he acted after Mbaya allegedly gave conflicting locations for the missing phone that yielded nothing when searched.

Newyear said he later instructed others not to assault Mbaya while he left to rest, only to return and find a crowd had already “barbed his hair” and appeared to have hanged him.

The phone’s owner, Rinji Daniel Fwanji, 25, narrated that Mbaya had spent the night at his residence before both he and the phone went missing around 4 a.m. on July 26. Daniel said he had initially intended to involve a lawyer, confirming that Emmanuel was the first to assault Mbaya, and that the phone remains unrecovered.

Another suspect, Joshua Tell, admitted holding Mbaya’s legs while he was being tied, while Nensemka Fwanji, Daniel’s brother, said he witnessed the assault and later rushed Mbaya to the hospital after seeing the severity of his injuries.

Meanwhile, the deceased’s younger sister has demanded justice for her brother, telling Vanguard, “We want justice. Those who took the law into their hands should also face the consequences of the law.”