An 18-year-old porknocker appeared in court yesterday charged with simple larceny and he was also charged jointly with a 16-year-old with break and enter and larceny at a dwelling house.
Johnny Bayley of 150 Guyhoc Park pleaded guilty with an explanation to stealing one PlayStation game valued $100,000 and one cell phone valued $63,000, a total value of $163,000, property of Vernan Walton called ‘Fuzzy’ on March 27, 2009 at Guyhoc Park.
In his explanation, he told Acting Chief Magistrate Melissa Robertson that he used to sleep over at the virtual complainant’s place and was a friend of Walton’s son. Bayley told the court that someone had told Walton that they saw him going into his place.
Bayley denied stealing anything and said further that the game he was accused of stealing was a PlayStation 3, which had not been released at that time.
The magistrate entered a not guilty plea for Bayley after his explanation.
Meanwhile, in relation to the break and enter charge, both Bayley and the 16-year-old allegedly on February 13 broke and entered the dwelling house of Olivia Teixeira and stole one surround sound music system valued $75,000, 3 pairs of boots valued $90,000, one gold chain valued $15,000, one diamond finger ring valued $120,000, three cell phones valued $247,000 and one cell phone case valued $2,000. The total value of the items stolen amounted to $549,000.
Bayley again pleaded guilty with explanation while the 16-year-old pleaded not guilty.
In his explanation, Bayley told the magistrate that the number two accused called him and told him that he had the VC’s keys and wanted to go into her house. Bayley told the court that his accomplice’s mother knew what they were planning.
He said he was given a haversack and black attire to enter the VC’s place as well as keys. The keys did not work, he said, so he made his way through the grill door which had a space at the top.
When in the VC’s house, Bayley said that the number two defendant served as the lookout. He was told where everything could be found. And after searching the woman’s house he said he stole the surround sound music set, two phones, a fine gold chain and two pairs of boots.
Bayley went on to say that the items were taken to his accomplice’s place. The following day he said he saw the police at his place and tried to get away from them but he was caught.
Meanwhile, the 16-year-old told the court that he had given Bayley the “book bag… me and he alone plan this whole thing.”
His plea was changed to guilty. He then told the magistrate that “from the beginning I was making a joke.” He said that Bayley asked for a bag and a black jersey and he gave it to him.
The number two accused also admitted that he was the one who had taken the police to Bayley’s place.
The virtual complainant, meanwhile, told the court that she was not aware that the number two accused had keys to her place. She told the court that the number two defendant would usually be over at her place keeping her and her son’s company. “I trusted him and now I hearing that he took my things,” the woman said becoming emotional.
The two defendants laid everything out before the magistrate, also telling of previous crimes committed. It was at this point that the VC learnt that the number two defendant was the one who had stolen from her in the past. That incident, she told the court, saw her mother-in-law hitting her in the head with a hammer because the mother-in-law thought she had stolen from her.
Accusations continued to fly back and forth between the defendants as they related what the other had done and they had to be asked to stop.
Meanwhile Police Prosecutor Inspector Stephen Telford told the court that some of the items had been recovered. He said that Bayley had handed over the surround sound system, two pairs of boots, the chain and two cell phones along with the phone case.
And the16-year-old, Telford said, handed over the third cell phone while the ring and a pair of boots were not found.
Bayley is to return to court on March 4 for statements in relation to his simple larceny charge. Both of the defendants are to return to court on the same day where a probation report will be read before sentencing is handed down.
