A 37-year-old man was sentenced to 20 days imprisonment or pay a R2 000 fine by the Midrand Magistrates’ Court.
Sanele Mncube was found guilty of theft after pleading guilty to the charge. He was arrested on 18 September after stealing electrical switches, belonging to City Power. The accused stole the switches from a meter box outside a complex in Midrand.
Addressing the court, prosecutor Mashudu Mutshaeni said the accused’s actions negatively affected residents of the complex where he had stolen the cables. The prosecutor said the theft affected power supply and caused damage to the infrastructure of an essential service. This was a fact that the magistrate concurred with, and he told the convicted thief that he had deprived owners of the said properties of their right to have electricity.
In mitigation, the defence attorney told the court to apply the element of mercy when sentencing, as the accused didn’t waste state resources with a lengthy trial. The attorney said the accused was a first-time offender, went to school until Grade 6, is single and has one dependent. The attorney also pointed out that the accused had been in custody since his arrest on 18 September, adding that it was punishment enough.
She also pointed that there was no actual loss on the side of the complainant, as the stolen items were recovered.
The prosecutor was having none of it. He said the accused knew his personal circumstances when he committed the crime, adding that theft was a prevalent crime in the court’s jurisdiction.
In sentencing, the magistrate said residents look up to courts to protect their rights, in this case, where they were deprived their right to have electricity. Mncube was sentenced to 20 days imprisonment wholly suspended for three years, provided that he is not convicted of the same crime, or pay the fine.
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