A St George’s man has been fined for stealing a pair of sneakers, although he told Magistrates’ Court the incident was a misunderstanding.

Dandre Leach, 47, pleaded guilty to the offence, said to have occurred on May 19.

The court heard that on June 8, police received a report of a theft from Sports R Us. Staff told officers that Leach had come to the store on May 19 and, after trying on shoes, walked out of the store wearing an unpurchased pair of Superstar adidas sneakers, leaving his own shoes in the box.

Leach was arrested later that day wearing the stolen sneakers.

During a subsequent police interview, he said that it had been an honest mistake, explaining that he had left the store in a rush and only realised what he had done after the fact.

Addressing the court, Leach apologised saying that he had returned to the store to resolve the matter before his arrest but was “brushed off” by sales people.

Magistrate Khamisi Tokunbo responded: “That doesn’t smell like an honest mistake at all.”

He subsequently fined Leach $500 for the incident.

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