CITY NEWS Court sentences phone thief AMAC boss signs 2018 budget into law to 20 months in jail
An Upper Area Court in Masaka, Nasarawa State, has sentenced a 25-year-old man, Friday Matthew, to 20 months in jail for causing grievous hurt and stealing phones worth N61,000.
The complainant, Mr Elvis Danko, while giving evidence, told the court that he was in his room at about 10:45p.m. when he heard through his window the voice of the convict calling somebody on the phone that the person should come as he had reached the area.
“Few minutes later, I heard my three sisters shouting, thief, thief!” he said.
He told the court that by the time he got to his sisters’ room one of the gang members attacked him and chopped off his thumb as he was trying to avoid being hit on the head.
“In spite of this, I still held on to his trousers. He then told two of his gang members to shoot me but they ran away instead. I held the accused until the vigilantes came to arrest him,” he said.
Earlier, the prosecutor, Frank Swem, told the court that on Jan. 29, 2018, one Joy Alex of Zone 3, Masaka, came to the divisional police headquarters and reported that one Friday Matthew of Old Karu, FCT, conspired with Jacob and Jamilu, surnames unknown and now at large, broke into her room and stole three mobile phones, one Techno Y2 valued at N17,000, Nokia C3 valued at N12,000 and Techno K7 valued at N32,000.
Swem said the offences contravened sections 97, 242, 247 and 287 of the penal code.
The judge, Mr Yakubu Ishaku, found the accused guilty and sentenced him as follows; criminal conspiracy, three months or a fine of N3,000. Criminal trespass, four months or fine of N4000; grievous hurt, seven months or a fine of N6,000 and theft six months and a fine of N6,000.
The court said the sentences are to run concurrently and directed the accused to pay a compensation of N165,000 for the treatment of the complainant and for the stolen phones. The Chairman of Abuja Municipal Area Council (AMAC), Abdullahi Adamu Candido, has signed the council’s 2018 budget into law.
Candido, who signed the bill at the council’s secretariat on Tuesday, urged the council’s financial managers to be prudent, disciplined and diligent.
Candido had presented a budget of N6.92 billion to the council’s legislative council in January.
“I want to charge all our financial managers to be prudent, diligent and disciplined in the discharge of their responsibilities. We should not do anything contrary to regulations, and due process must be adhered to in the award of contracts,” he said.
He also mandated the officials of the works department to ensure the completion of ongoing projects on or before July while new projects must be completed before May 20th.
He said the council will engage in ‘light projects’ to avoid the difficulties experienced last year in executing ‘gigantic projects,’ adding that no matter how light the projects should be, they must be people oriented.
“It is with great joy that we are witnessing the signing today of the 2018 budget of the area council. We chose to do it this way because there is nothing to hide,” he said.