Thief apologizes to business owner

As he faced a prison cell for the next nine months, the 31-year-old who broke into the Citi Life Bar, stood facing the owner, determined to apologize.

“He’s a young fella…he needs to change his life around,” said Earl ‘Gruv’ Abraham, owner of Citi Life Bar.

Alonzo Bailey, a fisherman from Greenhill, responded, “I change my life man. I’m very, very sorry for going into your business place, right? I’m really sorry,” while saying that he wouldn’t do it again.

Bailey had already been sentenced at this point, after being charged with, between June 11 and 12, damaging one glass sliding window, and one wooden door, the property of Earl ‘Gruv’ Abraham of New Montrose.

Secondly, he had been charged with attempting to commit burglary on the Citi Life bar and restaurant.

Bailey carried himself on crutches, made necessary from the bullet wound he sustained on the night of the intended burglary. This was inflicted from the projectile which came from the barrel of a licensed gun belonging to the owner.

The defendant, who remained consistently hunched over, cradling his right foot with his left foot, admitted his guilt to Senior Magistrate Rickie Burnett.

Abraham, was summoned to court, Burnett insisting that the “complainant should really hear how his matter is being handled by the court.”

When Abraham came to court and got into the witness box, he scrutinized the man who broke into his bar, as the prosecutor started reading the facts.

Apparently, after securing his business, Abraham went home for the night, but on the morning of June 12, he observed on the security cameras that someone was smashing his way into his bar.

After seeing this on the CCTV at his home, he drove to his bar and on arrival, met the defendant in a dark area. It was said that after Abraham was rushed, he shot Bailey with his licensed firearm.

The police found the defendant lying on his back, with a gunshot wound to his right leg.

At first there was no criminal record before the court, but because of procedure, Burnett decided he would not move forward without one.

When the criminal record came to light, with 14 to his name, the fisherman became ensnared in this net of convictions.

The defendant had a wide spectrum of convictions, from offensive language, trespass, attempted burglary and theft, to name a few.

“From a young age you got six strokes…remember that?…didn’t help you” Burnett mused.

Bailey mumbled that he follows bad company.

The defendant revealed that he only attended the CW Prescod Primary School, but no further.

“You are a lucky man to be alive…you understand that?” the senior magistrate told him, “I think Mr Abraham… is a good shooter…you were shot in the leg…if it was somebody else with a license who really can’t master the thing… then you might have been a dead man.”

He was intoxicated, after going by a bar to drink, explained Bailey.

“I mean if you are intoxicated, you go home and you stagger and you go some place…I mean…how do you attempt to go in somebody’s place?” Burnett queried.

“I ain self know where part myself go in, to be honest,” Bailey said.

The magistrate then asked if he was also drunk during the 2016 attempted burglary, and when he stole the ewe goat.

Burnett said that he had been drinking rum before the burglary, but that there was some controversy with the goat.

The magistrate said that if the defendant wanted to be helped with his drinking problem, the prison seemed to be the place to go. “When you’re outside, you get rum, you drink and you get yourself in trouble,” Burnett said.

He said that since these things are a daily occurrence, when persons appear before him he has to be hard on them.

He said that the accused’s injuries inspired no sympathy, “keep out of the man’s place – you’ll be fine.”

Prosecutor Corlene Samuel had only jail on her mind, “Mr Abraham is doing his business…everybody has bills to pay at the end of the day.”

With this, Bailey was sentenced to nine and six months in jail to run concurrently.

“Once I’m alive and I’m around, I will be here alright? And when you come out of prison I don’t expect to see you before me again,” Burnett told Bailey.

“I promise you that,” Bailey answered.

After apologizing to Abraham, the defendant came down from the dock, met Abraham, who was exiting, and the two exchanged words. The two awkwardly shook each other’s hands, and Abraham patted Bailey on the back, before leaving quickly.