Mr. Akino Narford will return to court on December 19 for sentencing

The first charge was that Mr. Narford, sometime between January 27 and 28, 2011 entered as a trespasser the dwelling place of Alistair Potter and Andrea Scott at Johnson’s Ghut and made off with items of a total value of $4,500. The items taken included cell phones, two ladies watches, two gold chains and a Virgin Islands Passport belonging to Mr. Potter.

The second charge was that the defendant on February 23, 2011 entered as a trespasser the dwelling place of Spencer and Florence Bassoo at Johnson’s Ghut and made off with, among other things, an Xbox video game valued $500, one 14 carat gold chain priced at $800, a pair of Nike Air Force sneakers, an Acer laptop and two gold-plated watches.

The court was told that in both of the cases Police were able to lift finger prints of the defendant and in both cases the items were never recovered. The defendant, when asked by the Magistrate what happened to the stolen items, he said he had sold them.

The defendant, who was 19 years of age at the time of the offenses, entered the home of Mr. Potter when the VC was asleep. It was not stated how the burglar may have gained entrance to the home. Mr. Narford, however, reportedly gained entrance to the Bassoo’s residence by lifting louvers from a door at the rear of the house which gave access to the kitchen area. The latter act was allegedly committed in broad daylight when no one was at home.

Police, acting on information on October 20, 2011, took the defendant into custody for questioning about the two incidents. He had denied the allegations but was formally charged for the offences.

Asked what he had to say to the court, Mr. Narford, who told the court he works with the BVI Football Association, said he was very sorry for the burglaries and that it was not his “thing”. He said for the past 7 months prior to his crimes he had no one to “look out” for him. In further attempting to get the leniency of the court, Mr. Narford said he has a 4 month old daughter and pleaded with the magistrate to give him a chance so that he could pay back for the items he stole.

The defendant’s mother, Maureen Jefferson, also told the court that her son was regretful for his crimes and that he went astray after he started to mingle with friends. “He knows he did something wrong. He had left the island and came back to face the consequences,” Jefferson said.

Magistrate Richards, however, informed the defendant that the matters were serious and required custodial sentencing. The maximum sentence for each offence is 3 years, however, Narford is not likely to face 6 years imprisonment since he had no prior convictions and that he is a young offender.

Sentencing is set for December 19, 2011. The defendant has been remanded in the meantime.