A Magistrate’s court sitting in Osogbo, Osun State, on Thursday sentenced a 30-year-old man, Sulaiman Awokunle, to six months imprisonment for stealing a ram.
The police had dragged Awokunle to court, accusing him of stealing the ram valued at N25,000 on August 22, 2017, at about 6:00 am at Onunrin’s Compound in Iree.
Police prosecutor, Elisa Olusegun, told the court that the ram belonged to a ram seller identified as Saka Idowu of Onunrin’s compound, Oke Ogi area, Iree.
Olusegun argued that the accused person committed an offence contrary to Section 383 and punishable under Section 390(9) of the Criminal Code, cap 34, Vol. II, Laws of Osun State of Nigeria, 2003.
Awokunle pleaded guilty to the one count-charge of theft slammed on him, but begged the court to be lenient with him, claiming that he mistook the ram for one of those that he reared and that he intended to kill one for the Friday Eid-el-Kabir celebrations.
Presenting the facts of the case matter before the court, the prosecutor said the accused untied the ram from the pole on which it was tied before he dragged it away.
The Magistrate, Adenike Olowolagba, found Awokunle guilty as charged and convicted him.
But the accused’s counsel, Najite Okobe, pleaded with the court to temper justice with mercy in sentencing his client.
Okobe further informed the court that the accused was a first time offender, adding that he was preparing to celebrate Sallah with his family.
Consequently, Magistrate Olowolagba said she would be tempering justice with mercy in sentencing the convict in the spirit of the Sallah celebration.
She, however, sentenced him to six months imprisonment, but gave him N4,000 option of fine.
Meanwhile, after the sitting of the court, our correspondent observed the apparently troubled convict making frantic phone calls to his family members pleading with them to source for the fine imposed on him to escape being taken to prison.
