A youth was thrashed by locals at Srikhetra Vihar under the Khandagiri police station in the city on Saturday for allegedly attempting to snatch a mobile phone from a woman.
The accused was identified as Narendra Mohapatra.
The woman was on her way back home when Narendra along with his two associates on a scooter tried to snatch her phone and sped away. While they were trying to flee from the spot, their vehicle was hit by a car and the trio fell from the scooter.
When the woman raised an alarm, locals rushed to her rescue and cornered the accused and rained blows on one of them. His two aides managed to flee from the spot in the melee.
Later, the Khandagiri police reached the spot, arrested the youth and seized the scooter. Of late, the spurt in mobile snatching incidents in the city has become a matter of concern for residents. But what is alarming is the miscreants do not hesitate to snatch belongings in broad daylight.