Magistrate – “Straight Up, I Don’t Believe.”

Terrance Toby on Tuesday, failed to convince Senior Magistrate Rickie Burnett that he stole a quantity of mangoes valued at $200, because he was hungry.

“I am telling you straight up that I don’t believe that,” Burnett told the 40-year-old man.

However, when the Magistrate further questioned Toby about the mangoes, he told the Court, “I was going to put them up to rip, and sell them. Some were ripe, and some were green.”

“You know, Mr. Toby, there is a serious problem where farmers and owners are competing with people like you,” the Magistrate told the defendant.

Toby had pleaded guilty to stealing a quantity of mangoes valued at $200 from Donald Findlay of Kingstown.

The court heard that Findlay was the caretaker of a property at Arnos Vale, owned by his brother Winston Findlay, who resides in the British Virgin Islands (BVI).

The property is secured by a concrete fence and equipped with CCTV cameras.

The virtual complainant, on several occasions, had warned Toby whom he knew, about picking the mangoes.

On September 7 around 8pm, the complainant checked the CCTV footage for the day, and saw Toby picking the mangoes at about 6:18pm.

The matter was reported to the police who visited the scene, and viewed the footage. They carried out further investigations, resulting in Toby being arrested and charged.

The Senior Magistrate ordered that Toby pay compensation in the sum of $200 by October 30, or go to prison for three months.

He was also bonded for one year. In breach, he would have to pay the court $1,000 forthwith, with an alternative of six months behind bars.

After handing down the penalty, Burnett warned the defendant sternly to ‘Stop thief!”

Toby had no previous convictions.