Many would see it as instant judgment: a man who allegedly went into the power station has got electrocuted instead.
The judgment was delivered right inside the Etete Injection Substation of the Benin Electricity Distribution Company (BEDC) Electricity Plc in Benin City, Edo State.
The deceased was suspected to be a member of a group that invaded the substation on Sunday and made away with several copper cables.
BEDC’s Head of Branding and Corporate Communications, Mrs. Evelyn Gbiwen, said the suspect was electrocuted after mistakenly cutting what he believed was an earthing cable, which was actually a neutral cable connected to the power transformer, triggering an electrical explosion.
Gbiwen added that the company received a report from members of the public that a suspected vandal went into the power station and got electrocuted.
He had actually returned there to continue stealing cables when he got the sentence.
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Stating that the destruction of electricity facilities has continued to disrupt power supply and inflict huge financial losses on the company, she appealed to host communities to help protect critical power infrastructure.
According to her, the destruction of electricity facilities across the company’s franchise states of Edo, Delta, Ondo and Ekiti, has continued to disrupt power supply and inflict huge financial losses on the company.
According to the Regional Head, Technical, Benin South Region, Engr. Afebogbe Oguezor, preliminary findings show that the suspect likely gained access to the substation by scaling the perimeter fence.
