By: Audrey Raymonda John
The accused, twenty-nine-year-old Augustine Smith, made another appearance before the principal Magistrate of the Freetown Magistrate Court No.1, Magistrate Shar Kekura, on Friday, November 15, 2024, for stealing over twenty thousand new Leones from the complainant’s account by using her ATM card.
Accused Smith was arraigned before Magistrate Kekura on one count of larceny contrary to section 2 of the Larceny Act of 1916. The charge sheet indicated that Smith stole twenty-eight thousand new Leones (Le28.00) from Salamatu Sankoh’s account on Thursday, August 15, 2024, at the United Bank of Africa (UBA) Rawdon Street in Freetown, using her ATM card.
After the charges were read and explained to the accused, Smith, he pleaded guilty to the offense.
After pleading guilty, the accused told Magistrate Kekura that he and the complainant were living together and had a child.
When Magistrate Kekura asked him what he had done with the money, he said he had used it for traveling purposes under Q-net, but the traveling process did not go through.
The complainant said she and the accused are not living together, but they have a child together, and the accused has access to her room as he usually goes and sleeps there.
She further said that she saved money in the bank to take care of the child as the accused is not performing his responsibility as a father to the child.
Before the sentence, the accused pleaded with tears for the magistrate to temper justice with mercy.
Magistrate Kekura sentenced the accused person to twenty-four months imprisonment at the Male Correctional Facility and to pay the state a fine of three thousand Leones.
