Sophia youth jailed for chain snatching

A Sophia youth was yesterday sentenced to three months in jail for stealing a woman’s gold chain.

Mark Gonsalves, a 21-year-old pork knocker, pleaded guilty when he appeared before Magistrate Annette Singh in a Georgetown court.

The charge against him stated that he stole a gold chain, valued $120,000, from owner Renuka Harlequin.

According to prosecutor Seon Blackman, Harlequin was walking along Water Street, where Gonsalves snatched her chain and began to run. However, he was subsequently chased and captured by public-spirited citizens, who later handed him over to the police.

The court heard that the chain was recovered and lodged with the Police at the Brickdam Police Station.

Magistrate Singh subsequently sentenced Gonsalves, who is father of a two-year-old, to three months in jail—the minimum sentence—while informing him that he was being given a second chance but must learn a lesson from the punishment.