Self-bail for cop charged over theft of cellphone

Ornesto Thomas
Ornesto Thomas

A policeman who was accused of stealing a cellphone, along with a SIM card, from another cop during a football training session, was yesterday granted his release after he denied the allegation.

Ornesto Thomas, 22, pleaded not guilty to the charge, which was read by Chief Magistrate Ann McLennan at the George-town Magistrates’ Court.

The charge alleges that on March 5, at the Police Sports Club Ground, Kingston, Ornesto stole a Samsung S5 cellphone, valued $60,000 and a SIM card, valued $2,000, from Carl Saul.

Facts, according to Prosecutor Gordon Mansfield, stated that on the day in question, after a football match at the said location, Saul, who is a policeman, as well as a football coach of one of the teams competing in the Women’s five-a-side tournament, after ending a training session with his team, discovered his cellphone missing from his pocket.

A report was made and an investigation was launched, which led to the arrest of Thomas, a policeman who was attached to the Sports Secretariat as an athlete. According to the prosecutor, Thomas admitted to finding the phone and discarding its SIM card. He also told investigators that he sold the phone to a known individual in Albouystown.

With no objections by Mansfield, Thomas was released on self-bail and the matter was adjourned until May 4, 2019.