Didn’t I sentence you before? Magistrate asks thief

Sep 22, 2009 News

Ricardo Smith, called Ricky, 49, of no fixed place of abode, probably forgot that he was sentenced by Magistrate Chandra Sohan on a previous occasion.

So when he turned up at the New Amsterdam Magistrate’s Court and indicated that he never had any previous trouble with the law, he was promptly reminded of his previous transgression by the magistrate.

Smith, who was described as a habitual and barefaced thief, was on Friday remanded to prison by the Magistrate on a charge of break and enter with the intention to commit a felony. On Wednesday September 9, ‘during high day light’ at ‘Mai Mai’ Angoy’s Avenue, Smith broke and entered the dwelling house of Ganga Devi Chetram.

However, the woman who was at home heard the commotion in her house and went to investigate the source of the noise.

She came upon the accused and raised an alarm but he managed to escape.

A report was made and he was subsequently arrested and charged. Prosecutor Roberto Figueira in asking the magistrate to refuse bail said that the culprit is a regular offender and was previously charged for committing crimes of a similar nature. He argued that if granted bail, there is a likelihood that he would commit similar offences and will not attend court.

But Smith in his plea for bail told the Magistrate that he was never in a trouble before. But Magistrate Sohan did not forget his face and when he told the suspect that he could remember sentencing him before, Smith remained silent.

The matter will continue on October 2.