CHARLES MUSONDA writes
ANOTHER daredevil thief was yesterday caught at the Lusaka Magistrates’ Court Complex after stealing money from a bag that was in a stationary motor vehicle.
Early this year, 41-year-old Derrick Chipungu was jailed seven years after admitting stealing K16, 026 cash and two mobile phones from the cashier’s office at the same premises.
The complex has been awash with incidencnts of people losing properties from their motor vehicles due to the porous nature of security outside the main building but yesterday’s culprit could not get away with it.
As court proceedings were going on around 10:00 hours, the unidentified man was spotted getting money from the bag in a Toyota Noah registration number ALD 6267 belonging to Gold Man Insurance, which was parked about five metres away from the holding cells block.
This was after he damaged the driver’s door with a sharp homemade car key like tool but his freedom was short lived as he was apprehended when he attempted to flee and was later taken to the nearby Ridgeway police post where he was locked up.
He faces up to five years imprisonment with hard labour if convicted.
And one of the eyewitnesses Misheck Francis Madakwa said he and others had gone to the complex for their court case and after the matter was adjourned they had a small meeting within the court grounds when they saw the man tampering with their colleague’s vehicle.
“We noticed the man opening the vehicle and opening the bag where there was K300. He got the K300 and immediately he saw us he started running and threw the bag in the car and people started chasing him and we managed to catch him. People wanted to beat him but the police officers came in and saved him.”