Burglar cops two years jail time
The time has come for the courts to harden their policies and consider public safety as paramount in dealing with certain offences. Magistrate Shageeth Somaratne made this comment while sentencing 27-year-old Nishant Roy at the Magistrates Court in Nausori last week.
Roy was convicted for one count of burglary. Roy had two similar cases before the court.
Roy was sentenced to two years imprisonment for two similar cases with a non-parole period of 16 months.
On April 27, 2019, at Vuci South Road, Nausori, Roy broke into a house and stole a Samsung S6 mobile phone valued at $1500, a IPhone 7+ valued at $1500 and $400 cash, all to the total value of $3400.
Whilst the complainant was sleeping in his bedroom, he sensed someone inside the room. He looked up to the door he saw Roy inside the room. The complainant shouted to his father, who was sleeping in another bedroom. The family all woke up and ran to the main door. Roy ran away. Upon checking her room, the complainant discovered that the items and cash were missing. Magistrate Somaratne said a sentencing court may consider the following grounds as aggravating factors in a domestic burglary:
Considerable loss of properties; the properties stolen may have some sentimental value to the owner; significant damage done to the property; there were some planning; the owner was present when this was committed; and the offence was committed in the night time.
“The list is not exhaustive and there may be other factors also that can take in to consideration in deciding the aggravating grounds.
“You broke in to the house of the complainant and stole the properties to the values of $4314. In case file 532/2019, the properties to the total value of $2028 were stolen.
“In a rural area like Nausori these are considerable loss of properties.
“With the increased number of home invasions happening across the country and also in the area of Nausori, I find the courts need to give more emphasis to deterrence and the protection of the public.
“The time has come for the courts to harden their policies and consider public safety as paramount in dealing with these kinds of offences.
“In my view the accused (Roy) is a danger to the public and needs to be incarcerated to protect the public and their properties,” Magistrate Somaratne said.