A Badagry Chief Magistrates’ Court A mild drama unfolded in Badagry court on Wednesday when the complainant, James Bassey, broke down in tears to beg for leniency for Puis Savoir, a dry cleaner who had been given a one-month term for stealing a pressing iron and N20,000.
Following Savior’s admission of guilt and the presentation of the evidence, Chief Magistrate Patrick Adekomaiya found him guilty.
Ikem Uko, the prosecution, stated to the court that the offense was committed on July 6 at around 7:00 p.m. at Yeponnawa Str. Church-Gate, Lagos, by the defendant.
Uko claims that the accused took a pressing iron and N20,000 from the complainant, Mr. Bassey. He said that the offense was against Section 287 of the Lagos Criminal Law from 2015.
The Chief Magistrate ruled that the court would be lenient because this was a first-time offender. As a result, Savior was given a one-month jail term, with seven days spent behind bars and the remaining three weeks spent performing community service at the Morogbo Police Station.
Mr. Bassey sobbed profusely and begged that the offender be pardoned immediately after the sentence was pronounced.
“My Lord, I don’t have a wife or children; it is this convict that always takes care of me. He used to help me do all my domestic work and massage me, but the habit of stealing my things is too much, that is why I reported him when he stole my money and pressing iron. If you sentence him to prison now, nobody will be assisting me, and this could lead to my death,” he said.
