2 men jailed 21 years for stealing phone, necklace

Two men, Qudus Waheed and Ganiyu Samson were on Tuesday at an Ikeja Hight Court, sentenced to 21 years in prison for stealing a necklace and mobile phone.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Waheed and Samson were sentenced by Justice Oluwatoyin Ipaye, following a plea bargain agreement in which they pleaded guilty to a charge of robbery.

“The defendants have pleaded not guilty to a lesser charge of robbery.

“The defendants before me have shown to be first time offenders who are in their mid to late twenties.

“However, Section 295 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, which imposes a mandatory sentence of 21 years in prison, must be taken into consideration.

“The Comptroller of Prisons, however, is hereby at liberty to apply for early release of the defendants to organisations such as the Prerogative of Mercy.

“I hereby sentence Qudus Waheed and Ganiyu Samson to 21 years each in prison, their period of detention should be taken into consideration,” Ipaye said.

According to Mr Jide Boye, the State Prosecutor, the convicts committed the offence at 5.30 a.m. on Dec. 20, 2012 at Ogunjobi Junction at the Dopemu area of Agege, Lagos.

“The convicts alongside other accomplices, who are at large, attacked one Mr Abolore Olayeni, who was on his way to work by hitting his head with the side of a cutlass.

“They stole his necklace worth N15, 000, an X2 mobile phone worth N5, 000 as well as N3, 000.

“The convicts were apprehended by the police and arraigned on Nov. 24, 2014 on charges of conspiracy and armed robbery which they plead not guilty to.

“They, however, considered entering a plea bargain agreement and approached the court through their counsel and they agreed to plead guilty to a lesser charge of robbery.

“The convicts have been in custody for four years and the offence of robbery under Section 294 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, prescribes at least 21 years in prison,” Boye said.

Earlier, before the sentence was passed, Chief Y.A. Ajao, the counsel to the convicts in his allocutus, asked the court for a lenient sentence for his clients.

“The defendants are young men and have shown a lot of remorse, they are penitent. They regretted what they did.

“On that particular day, they had just left a party and they were drunk and they promised that in their lifetime, they will never cause any trouble.

“They have been in prison for four years which is a long time,” Ajao said. - NAN