“I just wanted to relieve myself”: the astonishing defense of a thief arrested at 2 a.m. in Tivaouane Peulh

An attempted theft of plumbing equipment resulted in a warrant for the arrest of its alleged perpetrator, after the latter gave a version of events deemed unconvincing by investigators from the Tivaouane Peulh Local Brigade.

It was around 1:00 AM on the night of August 24-25, 2026, when A. Tambédou, a security guard at a construction site in the Apix neighborhood, began his usual rounds. He then surprised a man attempting to steal plumbing supplies stored in one of the buildings under construction. The intruder, who had apparently climbed in, was none other than Mr. Sow, a 27-year-old tile setter.

Caught in the act, the man struggled to explain himself. When questioned by the security guard about his presence there at such a late hour, he offered only incoherent answers. Unable to obtain a satisfactory explanation, A. Tambédou called on a neighbor to help subdue the man before alerting the police.

The local gendarmes, immediately notified, went to the construction site without delay. There, they apprehended the suspect, who was still being held by the security guard and his neighbor, and then took him to the station. He was taken into custody on August 25th at 2:00 AM for attempted burglary by climbing during the night.

It was before the police that Mr. Sow presented his defense. He categorically denied any intention of theft and claimed to have entered the building for a completely different reason: a natural need. "I wanted to relieve myself," he stated.

According to his statements, his presence on the construction site would therefore have no connection with the plumbing equipment discovered not far from him, an explanation which however was not enough to dispel the suspicions against him.

At the end of the investigations, Mr. Sow was presented to Prosecutor Cheikh Diakhoumpa, head of the Rufisque prosecutor's office, who ordered his placement under a detention order.