Thief given suspended sentence for stealing cellphone
A 49-year-old man has been told to “stop his foolishness” after pleading guilty to stealing a $900 cellphone from a store in Somerset Village.Raymond Robinson was given a six-month prison sentence suspended for two years for helping himself to the white Samsung Galaxy S2 phone.Prosecutor Cindy Clarke said Robinson had taken the store manager’s phone from the counter of Audio Visual at about 2pm on November 16.Robinson was caught on CCTV putting the phone in his pocket after he entered the store and asked for a replacement battery for a Nokia phone.Staff later spotted Robinson outside the store and the police were called. The cellphone was later retrieved and returned to its owner.Robinson was said to be known to the court with “a rather lengthy history” of mainly theft and drugs related charges dating back to 1988.The court was told that although Robinson has a drug problem, he had held a full-time job at the Jamaican Grill for about three years.Robinson offered to pay a fine, saying he could afford up to $200 a week.He said: “I don’t want to be out of a job for something stupid. I made a mistake.“If I do get through this, it will be the last time you see me in court. Some time in life you have to make a change and say that’s it”.Senior Magistrate Archibald Warner said Robinson had a history of drugs and stealing and “clearly the two are connected”.He said: “You are getting old and you have to stop doing this foolishness.“You can’t go around stealing people’s things over and over again.“You say you are remorseful and you want another chance, but I’ve heard that before”.Robinson was warned that if he committed any further offences in the next two years, he could be immediately sent to prison.