A Bequia man who burglarised a visitor’s apartment in the northern Grenadine island in March has blamed “a demon” for his actions.
“I couldn’t sleep that night. Something was harassing me. A demon; because I couldn’t sleep that night before the burglary,” Elvis Leach told Senior Magistrate Rickie Burnett at the Kingstown Magistrate’s Court on Friday.
“Is the demon humbugging you now,” Senior Magistrate Rickie Burnett asked Leach.
“No,” the admitted burglar said.
“The last thing you want when you are visiting is for someone to invade your space like that,” the magistrate said.
Leach, 43, pleaded guilty to charges that between March 9 and 10, 2019, at Lower Bay, Bequia, he damaged two deadbolt locks and a glass window, the property of Sunset Cottage
He also pleaded guilty to a charge that between March 9 and 10, 2019, at the Lower Bay, Bequia, he burglarised Sunset Cottage and stole one black Tower knife set, value EC$240, one white iPhone 7 with gold trimmings, value US$500, one black wallet, value US$125, the property of Rebecca Bollard of the United States.
The court heard that on March 9, 2019, about 10:30 p.m., Solana Gooding, the manager of Sunset Cottage, left the property with everything intact.
The guest, Rebecca Bollard, was in her room.
When Gooding returned about 11 a.m. the following day, she discovered that the hotel had been burglarised.
The deadbolts on the doors were damaged, along with a glass window.
Bollard had left her cell phone, knife set, and wallet in the sitting room and gone into the bedroom and had locked the doors and windows.
When she checked upon arrival of the manager, the guest found that the items were missing.
The matter was reported to the police and constable Ezra Nimblett investigated.
The investigation led to the defendant, who admitted to the offence.
The iPhone was found on Leach’s person and police conducted a search at his home, where the knife set was located.
The wallet was never recovered.
In mitigation, the man told the court that he had been employed on a garbage truck for the past 25 years and is paid EC$1,050 per month.
He said he lives with his mother and has no children.
The man’s record was presented to the court, but Burnett said that since his last conviction was more than 10 years ago, he was not even permitted to look at the document when considering a sentence, in keeping with the directives of the Court of Appeal.
Leach initially told the court that he had “no explanation for my action”.
Asked by the magistrate what if the court considers sending him to prison, Leach said, “If is my judgment, is my judgment.”
Burnett said the mitigating factors are that Leach had pleaded guilty and that most of the items were recovered.
The prosecution told the court that the cell phone was in good working condition.
The magistrate said the aggravating features are the prevalence of burglaries in St. Vincent and the Grenadines and that Leach had no explanation for his actions.
Burnett said the court has to send a message to Leach and others like him who might want to conduct themselves in a similar way.
He further said the fact that the man committed the crime although he has been employed for 25 years and is working for EC$1,050 a month, was aggravating.
For the wallet, Leach was ordered to compensate Bollard in the sum of EC$333.73 by Sept. 30 or go to prison for three months.
He is also to compensate Gooding in the sum of EC$800 by Sept. 30 or spend six months in prison.
Burnett also ordered Leach to pay a fine of EC$3,000 by Dec. 12, 2019 or spend 12 months in prison.
We can in no way condone the despicable action of this nefarious individual but at a time when some here in this small nation of ours are jumping up and down about the recent U.N vote and our about to send even more well paid bureaucrats off to join our U.N team in New York, just take a casual look for a little moment at this poor man’s monthly wage.
This sad individual’s wage for a full month’s work, is just a meagre EC$1,050 or as he has told the Court, just a pittance of EC$262.5 per week. How is this individual expected to live a meaningful life in this poverty-stricken country of ours? What can such paltry wage buy him at the end of each month?Are we and the U.L.P blind to his plight?
One must again ask, what are the true priorities of this U.L.P administration that appears to care so little about both the employed waged-poor and the even poorer unemployed?
Keeping in mind the cost of Electricity, Telephone, Gas and water here, the obvious basics, added to those are his clothing and daily food bill! Just how this individual is expected to survive on his pitiful earnings? The U.L.P Government headed by Ralph Gonsalves are surely, most sadly, letting this poor fellow and the many others like him very badly down.
When will they put economic competence above useless socialist rhetoric?
The Devil made me do it!
We all as citizens of this blessed beautiful island have a role to play in making all visitors and every one here in st Vincent. and the grenadine feel safe regardless of our position in life there is no excuse for your criminal act . go to jail man.
People think these things are fake they are not demons are real and we need deliverance from every demon every principality and powers in high places . And we think jailing him is going to solve the problem . People wake up and pray for deliverance and healing in Jesus name
A demon ate my homework!…Then it lost dad’s car keys after he drank a bottle of rum.
The truth is James that I would grit my teeth and not say how low this man’s wages are but I would instead mention how high the cost of everything in SVG is. Crime is not going to go away when Ralph raises taxes more and more and promises to put some of it toward fighting crime, along with paying more diplomats and other such things.
When taxes go up so does all other costs…BUT USUALLY NOT WAGES. With higher costs inside our country we have to ask more for any products we export….wait…We don’t export! …We do not export because the cost to produce anything in SVG is far higher than it is in all other developing and developed countries. It is too high because costs are too high and that is because taxes are too high!…James I know you understand this but I hope other readers do as well.
Needs to go to jail for his actions but wages definitely need to be reviewed
No disrespect DANIEL but perhaps you need further guidance on the sovereignty of God!
https://www.mljtrust.org/free-sermons/great-biblical-doctrines/
Let’s face it DANIEL, this man was following his own antisocial and delinquent will when he made a decision to enter a building where he was not invited, but worst, he decided to engage himself in the stealing of personal property from its occupants.
Though he is indeed wage poor like so many others in our country, we are all required to respect others, their private space and their property too.
Daniel maybe you are also possessed, his explanations are excuses for not taking responsibility of his life. Earning $1000 EC is all is fault. How about self employment? Did he take advantage of the education system or he was one of them that “burn school” as they would say in local parlance. The fact that the chickens have come home to roost and is now sitting on his dinner table. It is all hs fault. Please do not blame the Ulp or any other political parties.
Self-employment doing what W.Cole? Selling more far eastern plastic junk and ready-made rubbish under the rat filled arches of SVG or on our crammed street corners? Are there not enough of such scrunting peddlers there already?
JAMAL is absolutely correct, our Taxes here in SVG are by far, much, much too high and that works to dissuade any meaningful start-up in businesses here. Such however, is settled U.L.P policy, who believes that Government should own everything.
We are currently witnessing in Venezuela, the sad results of what such policy does to countries, resulting in high taxation, and what it can do to a once prosperous economy.
Yet traversing along the same used pathway to ruin, is Ralph Gonsalves and his U.L.P, telling us “dat dem na tun back”! So brace for more salt sucking! As Bob once said “fe dem belly full but we hungry.” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y_8mIUY0VNk
Ah’ hazard a guess dat dis man carrn tek no more ah’ de salt sucking, so im now ha fo go drink some porridge ah Belle isle Prison, carse ah weah im ah’ go find dem kind ah’ money fo go pay Court!
resist the devil !nd temptation next time bro, at least he pleases guilty, now pay your debts and do better ok…
James H self-employment is not confined to Kingstown. There are lots of opportunities for right thinking individuals who can think outside the box. There are opportunities in Agriculture and other small businesses. The problem I can see results from individual not having the right skills. There is absolutely no reason why one should be earning $1000 EC per month.
Here is a thing W. COLE, a short while ago I was having a conversation with an individual whom I knew as an extremely very serious farmer. Indeed I has cause, not so long ago to spend a good deal of money with him buying his farmed produce while commending him on his foresight and endurance in the farming business amidst the high volume of predatory larceny here.
On this occasion however I was most surprised to find him in Kingstown under one of those arches selling bottles and packets of various items. Was he just assisting someone for the day was my enquiry of him. Well no’ no, no! Was his immediate reply.
What had cause him to be there under this arch in such a deplorable and pitiful state? “I have just had enough of this farming idiocy”! “I have had enough of getting up early mornings, farming all day in the hot sun, only to have thieves steel my sheep, potatoes, ginger, pineapple and whatever I grow”.
He had helped and watched his old father farmed all his life and decided to follow in his footsteps. His farming skills is not in doubt. Is he thinking outside the box W. COLE?