By PETER UWUMAROGIE

An unidentified man was electrocuted while attempting to steal transformer cables belonging to the Jos Electricity Distribution Company (JEDC on Friday in Gombe.

Confirming this to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Gombe, ASP Buhari Abdullahi, the Police Public Relations Officer, Gombe State Command, said the incident happened at about 7:00a.m.

“Around 7:00a.m. on Friday, the Police on duty saw someone trying to cut high tension cable that linked the pole to the transformer at Independent National Election Commission (INEC) Zonal Store in Gombe.

“He cut one of the armoured cables; in the process of cutting the second, he was electrocuted,” Abdullahi said.

He said that the policemen took the unidentified man to the Specialist Hospital, Gombe, where he was certified dead by a medical personnel.

Abdullahi said the body had been deposited at the hospital’s mortuary.

“The deceased is yet to be identified because there was no item on him,” the police spokesperson said.

Abdullahi said that the deceased might have tried to take advantage of the recent power outage in the state to steal the armoured cables, not knowing that electricity had been restored.

When contacted, the Head of Corporate Communications, JEDC, Dr Elijah Adakole appealed to residents to always resist the temptation to vandalise electrical installations and equipment to avoid such unpleasant occurrence.

Adakole said that the company had been losing huge investment through vandalism; hence, the appeal to communities in their franchise areas to protect installations from being vandalised.

“If you see anyone entering any of our transformers, ask questions and interrogate them and if possible, report them to the nearest security agents.

“We know that these assets serve the various communities, so it behoves on communities to take ownership of the facilities, so that all of us can benefit from them maximally.

“When equipment are vandalised, communities will be in darkness, economic activities will be affected, social life truncated, security of the area could be compromised,” he said. (NAN)