Judgement was handed down at the Scottburgh Magistrate’s Court on Tuesday morning for a housebreaking with intent to steal and theft case.
The accused, a 22-year-old man residing in Renishaw, was sentenced after months of court appearances.
The incident had occurred in September last year and the accused had pleaded not guilty.
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The complainant, an elderly woman, had done her own investigation after she realised her house had been broken into and had managed to find the suspected thieves by herself.
She tracked down someone who had bought her stolen property. He referred her to the people from whom it had been bought. When she handed the matter over for Saps investigations, one of the two suspects was arrested.
The accused explained to the court that there had been a second person involved and that he had not actually broken in and stoled the property, although he had had a role in selling it.
The second suspect in the case then went ‘missing’ and could not be arrested. The accused claimed in court that he had bought the stolen property from of the now missing suspect and then sold it to the person with whom the complainant had made contact.
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The stolen property included a television set and PlayStation with a total value around R2 000. As there was insufficient evidence that the accused or other suspect had actually broken into the complainant’s property, the accused was convicted of only theft.
Taking into consideration that he is a young parent, is married and the breadwinner of the house, a non-custodial sentence was handed down.
He was required to pay a fine of R2 000 or face four months’ imprisonment, half suspended for three years.
The court explained that this sentence was fair enough for the accused and would, hopefully, make him think twice the next time he gets involved in a similar situation.
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