Chogozie Ozokwere, 28, had appeared on a count charge of stealing before Idowu of the Ebute Meta Chief Magistrates’ Court in Lagos.

The prosecutor, Insp. Chinalu Uwadione, said that Ozokwere picked four handsets from pockets of pedestrians at Oyingbo Bus Stop in Ebute Meta, on Oct. 13 at about 9:30a.m.

He submitted that the handsets were worth N20,000.

“The accused had been lynched and beaten to a pulp when he was caught before being handed over to the police and brought before the court,” Uwadione said.

He noted that pickpocketing contravened Section 285 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2011.

The section states that any person who steals any property is guilty of a felony, and liable, if no other punishment is provided, to imprisonment for three years.