WINDHOEK – A 31-year-old security guard was last Friday sentenced to 15 months direct imprisonment by the Windhoek Magistrate’s Court for stealing several luxury food items at the place he was supposed to guard.
Magistrate Justine Asino sentenced Junias Uukelo to 15 months imprisonment of which five months were suspended for five years on condition that he is not convicted for theft during the period of suspension. Uukelo pleaded guilty to the charge that he stole chocolate, biltong, biscuits, polonies and other meat products during his stint as a security guard at one of the Puma service stations in the capital. He told the court that he started at the service station in August this year and had taken the items everyday during his shift. He however denied taking some of the items on the list that formed part of the charge sheet. He was arrested on September 09, 2013 after some video footage showed him stuffing some items into his pockets. The items he stole comprised of various Cadbury chocolates, droëwors, biltong, smoked bacon, jagdwurst, fleischwurst, yoghurt, Baker’s biscuits and polony among others valued at N$1 823.55. In mitigation Uukelo told Magistrate Asino that he took the items because he was hungry, but she cut him short and told him that it was not bread that he stole. Bread can fill you, she said, this stuff you took are treats. He further asked the court to give him a fine since he is a first offender.
Prosecutor Samantha Diergaardt wanted none of this however and told Asino that even a first offender can be sent to jail directly upon conviction. She said that courts are filled with first offenders on a daily basis, who think it is fine for them to take things unlawfully. According to her the courts must take a stand and show that such behaviour will not be tolerated. Magistrate Asino told Uukelo that theft out of shops has become prevalent in the district of Windhoek and the courts are duty bound to protect society and shop owners. She said the stuff Uukelo took cannot be classified as things that someone needed to survive, but are luxury items stolen out of greed.
By Roland Routh