Layou resident placed under bond after failed theft attempt

A Layou man is now on a six-month bond after he attempted to steal a deadbolt lock from Ace Hardware in Kingstown yesterday.{{more}}

Wayne Murray, 54, pleaded guilty to theft yesterday when he was brought before the Serious Offences Court, a few hours after he was apprehended.

The court was told that around 10 a.m. on January 9, 2017, the security guard on duty at Ace Hardware Kingstown observed that Murray had entered the store and proceeded to the lock and bolt section, where he put a deadbolt in his backpack and proceeded towards the exit.

However, on his way out, the security guard intercepted Murray and found the deadbolt during a search of the backpack. The 54-year-old man was then detained and handed over to police.

When he appeared before Chief Magistrate Rechanne Browne-Matthias a few hours later, the Layou man told the court that he went to the store looking at the prices of tiles when he remembered that he had broken a key in his deadbolt.

“So, I just see it and tek it,” said Murray.

Browne-Matthias asked Murray to stop explaining after she tried briefly to make sense of his explanation.

In an act of leniency, the Chief Magistrate ordered restitution for the lock and placed Murray on a six-month bond. If he fails to abide by the rules of the bond, he would be subject to a fine of $1,500 or face six months in prison. (AS)