Vigilante group formed to protect Yangon people from thieves

21 November 2022
Vigilante group formed to protect Yangon people from thieves

A vigilante group calling themselves Frighten the Thieves (FTT) has been formed to protect people from thieves and gangs of robbers due to a rise in armed theft.

According to a member of the FTT, the group was founded in October of this year by young people to protect Yangon people.

"We don't want to see people being bullied in this way. Despite the fact that we are a small group of ordinary people but we want to protect the people as much as we can. Pickpockets and gangs of robbers on YBS buses have become a daily occurrence in Yangon since the coup," said a FTT member.

The public are alarmed.

"Whenever we take the bus, we wonder when we will be pickpocketed or robbed. In the worst-case scenario, they threaten passengers on buses with deadly objects such as knives, sharp steel pipes, and commit robberies," a commuter said.

According to the Yangon Region Transport Committee's (YRTC) daily report, there are more than 100 buses operating in Yangon, with a total of more than 3,000 buses and over 1.2 million daily commuters.

The FTT will attempt to apprehend the theft gangs by monitoring and riding YBS buses in some areas.

If the thieves are captured, a member of the FTT group stated that they will be handed over to police stations under the authority of the Military Council.