Thief given two years to live by doctor, begs court for a chance to wed fiancé

Claiming he had been diagnosed with prostate cancer and given two years to live, a career thief today asked the court for leniency to allow him to marry his fiancé before the year ends.

That request was acceded to by Chief Magistrate Ian Weekes, who only sentenced him to six months in prison after he pleaded guilty to two separate theft charges.

“In order to make sure that you walk down the aisle with this lovely woman what I will do for you is sentence you to six months on the first charge and six months on the second charge but that will run concurrently so that you will only spend six months in jail,” Weekes told George St Clair Ricardo Lance Beckles when he appeared in the District ‘A’ Magistrates’ Court this afternoon.

“That will give you the rest of the year for you to marry this woman.”

The 53-year-old Beckles, of 3rd Avenue, Goodland, St Michael, had earlier pleaded body January 14,

He also admitted that between February 6 and 7 he entered Yellow Bird Variety as a trespasser and stole six bottles of rum and $236 in cash, a total value $302, belonging to Sonita Antoine.

In the case of Doobay, Beckles, who had 29 previous convictions, 21 of them being of a similar nature, told the court he did some work for the complainant but she was procrastinating in paying him.

As a result, he said he took the items as payment.

However, for the second offence, Beckles, who admitted to having a drug problem, complained that family members took his television, firestick and other items away from him after they realized he had relapsed and was using drugs in fear that he might sell them.

He said after they refused to give him back his items he went into the stall, which belongs to a family member and took up the bottles of rum and cash.

Beckles told the Chief Magistrate he had only been given two years to live and wanted an opportunity to do certain things.

“I’m asking the court for some leniency. I want to marry my fiancé this year. I was diagnosed with prostate cancer and the doctor told me I have two more years. I want to marry my fiancé before the end of the year so I’m just asking the court to show me some leniency,” Beckles pleaded.

In giving the facts of the first charge, prosecutor Sergeant Victoria Taitt said Doobay, who runs a shop situated in Black Rock went to use the bathroom. While she was there she heard a noise and when she came out she realized that the shelves were untidy.

It was while repacking the shelves that she realized the items were missing. She checked the footage from the security cameras and saw that the accused had pushed his hand through the window and removed the property.

Regarding the second charge, Sergeant Taitt said the Yellow Bird Variety was locked and secured. Around 5 a.m. the owner’s father looked through the window and saw the accused leaving the shop with a bag. He chased after him but he managed to escape.

Beckles was subsequently arrested.