Accused AC thief gets bail

Facing allegations of stealing an air-conditioning unit, a Prospect man was on Thursday granted $25,000 bail when he appeared before Magistrate Faith McGusty.

Shaheed Basheer, of 207 Prospect, East Bank Demerara, pleaded guilty to the charge of stealing the unit, which was the property of Lisa Insanally.

It is alleged that on January 26, at Queenstown, Georgetown, Insanally received a phone call from one of her employees stating that someone was stealing her AC unit. When she travelled to the location, Basheer was seen sitting beside it. The police were later called and he was subsequently arrested.

Basheer told the court, however, that he was picking up bottles when a man on a bicycle approached him and asked him to assist in lifting the said AC unit. He said he told the man he couldn’t because he had several stitches on his stomach. Basheer further stated that the man placed the AC unit over a fence and asked him to look at it until he returned. Basheer was later found by the unit and arrested by the police.

Subsequent to the explanation given by the accused, a not guilty plea was entered by Magistrate McGusty and he was granted his release on $25,000 bail and told to report to the Providence Police Station every Monday.

The matter was adjourned to February 26.