Barrouallie woman steals strong rum with child’s assistance

A Barrouallie woman who stole a bottle of Sunset strong rum with the assistance of her child, has been placed on a bond.

The woman, who appeared at the Kingstown Magistrate’s Court before Senior Magistrate Colin John pleaded guilty that on December 19, 2023 at Arnos Vale, she stole one bottle of Sunset strong rum, valued $44.25, the property of Massy stores.

A security officer, who is responsible for monitoring the cameras which are placed in and around the stores noticed a woman, and a younger female who appeared to be between the ages of 10 and 12, enter the store. He saw that the child was wearing a bag on her back and that both females were acting suspiciously.

He continued monitoring them and observed the child walking to a shelf where there was alcohol. She then took up a bottle of strong rum, and then walked towards the older the woman who was standing next to a table with boxes.

The officer then noticed the woman taking up one of the boxes from where it was and placing it on another. The child then took the bag off of her back and placed it on the table next to the woman. The woman then placed the bottle of strong rum in the bag, and handed it to the child, who then began to exit the store.

The officer then headed to the supervisor to inform him on his observations. At that point, the child had already passed the cashiers. The officer confronted the child and asked her where she was going, to which she responded, “Outside”. The officer then asked the child to hand over the strong rum that she had in her bag.

The child responded, “I have nothing in my bag”. The security officer then requested a search of the bag. The child handed over the bag, and when the officer began to search, the child immediately said, “We brought this from home”. The officer asked the child who accompanied her to the supermarket.

The child pointed out the woman who standing at the back of the cashier’s line. The officer approached the woman, informed her of his investigations, and told her that the police had been informed of their offence. When the police arrived shortly after, Constable 223 Browne entertained the report.

The woman, the child, the bottle of strong rum, and the CCTV footage were handed over to Constable Browne. The woman was arrested and taken to the Criminal Investigations Department where she was interviewed and cautioned.

The woman did not give a statement to the police. She was later charged. with theft. She has no antecedents before the court.

She told the court that the child is her daughter, and she stole the bottle of rum so that she could resell it to pay for her medical treatment.

“So you’re encouraging your daughter to commit a criminal offence?” John questioned.

“And you seem to have come prepared?” he continued.

When the woman told him that she had never been arrested before, John asked her,” Why are you looking to…tarnish your character?”

He reprimanded her for being “a bad example of a parent” and told her that the offence of theft could land a person in jail for two years.

“These are things you consider when you embark on offences of this nature,” he continued.

When determining her sentence, John contemplated fining her but found that it “would cause more hardship,” and so he placed her on a bond in the sum of $500 with a default of three months imprisonment.