A 26-year-old serial thief, Valentine Alfred Patrick, has been sentenced to a jail term of two years for stealing eggs and other properties from different victims.
The judgement was passed, on Thursday, when the accused was arraigned at a sitting court at the State Criminal Investigation Department, Iyaganku, Ibadan.
He was said to have been arrested last Monday by policemen from Apete Division in the state police command.
He was said to have stolen eggs, which led to his being taken to the police station.
According to Tribune, it was at the police station that one of his past victims recognised him, as the suspect was said to have chatted with her on phone, pretending as if he wanted to sew a cloth.
It was also gathered that his mode of operation was to go to houses on the pretext of wanting to rent a room, after which he would go back to steal the residents’ property, usually at noon.
Some of his operations included the one carried out on April 17, when he broke into the apartment of one Yussuf Kaosarat Abiola and went away with her property.
Also, in the same month, he broke into the apartment of one Olatunji Abisola in a similar manner and carted away her property.
The belongings of one Kayode Ifeoluwa Olorunfemi were also stolen sometimes in March.
The information gathered led the police to search his rented room, from where some of his victims’ belongings were recovered.
The convict had once been arrested for the same offence, and was charged to court, according to police source.
He was said to have been remanded in prison custody for almost six months before being released on bail.
His case was still in court, with him undergoing trial, before his latest operations.
Magistrate Adisa, who presided over the case, thereby sentenced him to two years imprisonment without an option of fine.
