48-year-old man sentenced to six years in prison over stealing groundnuts
Grade One magistrate’s court in Ibanda has sentenced a 48-year-old man to six years in prison for breaking into a woman’s house and stealing her groundnuts.
Court heard that the suspect identified as Vincent Tumuhereze, 48, committed the crimes on June 27, 2023 at Karindiriro Kashangura when he broke and entered into the house of Mildred Kamasanyu and stole a half basin of shelled groundnuts valued at UGX 100,000.
After a lengthy hearing of the case, court found the suspect who is a resident of Nyamuswiga, Kashangura in Kagongo Division, Ibanda Municipality guilty of the offences.
Tumuhereze was subsequently convicted and sentenced to three years in jail for each of the two counts. The jail terms will run consecutively; one after the other.
While reading the sentence, her worship Esther Murungi said the convict was not remorseful despite the compelling evidence against him.
Earlier, when the court asked him to say something before his sentence, he prayed for a jail term of nine months.
However, prosecution led Emmanuel Tian had prayed for 17 years in prison. Tian argued that although the convict was a first-time offender, he had wasted the court’s time through a lengthy hearing.
Theft contravenes section 254(i) and 261 of the Penal Code Act and the crime carries a maximum sentence of 10 years, when one is convicted.
