A 17-YEAR-OLD boy who escaped a jail term because of his age last year after being convicted of kidnapping the child of a Kwekwe businessman, is back in court facing charges of stealing 70 cellphones from a car.
STAFF REPORTER
The boy pleaded guilty when he appeared before Kwekwe resident magistrate Taurai Manwere facing theft charges of stealing the phones worth $5 004 from Takunda Chaduka on May 25.
It was the State’s case that the boy together with Clayton Mhlaba (21) went to Rubens Supermarket in Kwekwe and found Chaduka loading the cellphones, which included Nokia Luminas and Sumsang Galaxy Note 3s, into his car from the shop for overnight safe keeping.
The State alleged that Chaduka left his car unlocked when he went back into the shop to collect more phones and on his return Mhlaba intercepted him and started talking to him to stall his quick return to the vehicle.
“It is during that time that the boy opened the car and took the phones with him and upon getting a signal that the plan had worked, Mhlaba then left Chaduka and went away,” part of the State outline reads.
Mhlaba pleaded not guilty when he separately appeared before Manwere and was remanded in custody to June 17 for trial, while the boy was referred to the probation officer for evaluation while awaiting sentence.
The boy made headlines when together with his sister and brother-in-law kidnapped a four-year-old girl and demanded a $40 000 ransom. The ransom was paid and the child released.
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The three were nabbed in Bulawayo three days later while on a shopping spree.
They had bought a kombi, plasma screens and expensive household furniture and were staying in hotels.
