A former Regent Household Electronics worker has been ordered to perform community service over the next two months after he admitted to attempting to steal an amplifier from the store.
Rickford Atwell, 29, was yesterday charged with simple larceny at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts. The charge, which was read to him by Principal Magistrate Sherdel Isaacs-Marcus, stated that on October 2nd at Regent Household Electronics, located at Lot 143 Regent Road, Bourda, he stole an amplifier, valued $45,000, which was the property of Shaheed Hamid.
Atwell pleaded guilty to the charge and told the court that he saw the amplifier and wanted to check to see whether it was good or not. When the magistrate asked him what he planned to do with the amplifier, he said he wasn’t sure.
Police prosecutor Adduni Inniss told the court that Atwell was an employee at the Regent Household Electronics store. She said on the day in question, Hamid was doing the usual bag check that is conducted in the afternoon before employees leave and that Atwell had his bag hidden. When he finally brought the bag forward, the amplifier was found inside of it.
The police were called and when they arrived they cautioned him. He was asked what he planned on doing with the amplifier and he told them that he was just going to take it come to see if it was working. He was then arrested.
After the prosecutor was finished reading the facts, Atwell told the magistrate that he was going to take the item home but then he changed his mind and was going to return it when he was called upon to have his bag checked.
Atwell was then advised to apologise to his employer, which he did in court. He was ordered to do community service from October 7th to December 9th, every Monday and that if he did not report he would have to serve three weeks in prison. He was also ordered to undergo six months of counselling.
