Burglar of Code Red’s van jailed for 18 months

One month after a burglar was given seven days to return the stolen goods he took, he was sent to jail for 18 months for the offence.

Jeffrey Gordon, a 26-year-old resident of Mesopotamia, appeared before magistrate Bertie Pompey at the Kingstown Magistrate’s Court last Thursday.

In the SEARCHLIGHT edition of August 21, Anthony ‘Code Red’ Bacchus made an appeal for the burglar to return the items taken from his passenger van in seven days and avoid charges being brought against them. The magistrate admonished the defendant, noting that he had been given ample time to return the items, but failed to do so. The defendant stated that he was not around when the article was published.

“Me been ah bush; me nah been know. Is wen I come out, people been telling me they looking fuh me and how I been in the papers.”

The charge stems from an incident in which Gordon was caught on camera entering the passenger van of Bacchus while it was parked in the yard of SEARCHLIGHT newspaper.

Surveillance video shows a man entering SEARCHLIGHT’s yard on two occasions, dressed in a capri jeans pants, T-shirt and white sneakers.

In another video, a policeman, along with the conductor of the van, carried out a search of the van and the burglar can be seen escaping through a back window of the van, jumping over the wall of SEARCHLIGHT’s property, into the parking lot of Planned Parenthood Association office.

In handing down his sentence, Pompey told the defendant that he does not believe he will change his ways.

Gordon, who has 16 previous convictions, pleaded with the judge to fine him and not send him to prison. He was observed crying in the back of the police transport before being transported to Her Majesty’s Prisons.(JWC)