2 employees arraigned for alleged theft of 682 beer crates

May 5, 2017 1:47 AM

An Ikeja Magistrates’ Court, which granted the accused bail, asked them to produce two sureties each as part of the conditions.

Beer crates (Illustration)

Two employees —

Fakorede, 33, and Ugbeh, 32, who entered a `not-guilty’ plea to a three-count charge of conspiracy, stealing and forgery, are residents of Agege in Lagos State.

The Magistrate, Mrs O.J Awope, said the sureties must be gainfully employed and should show evidence of two years’ tax payment to the Lagos State Government.

The Prosecutor, Insp. Ezekiel Ayorinde, had said that the accused committed the offences on April 5, at Oba Akran Avenue, Ikeja, Lagos.

He said that the accused conspired to divert company products valued at N743,000, property of Guinness Nigeria Plc.

Ayorinde said that the first accused, Fakorede, who was a driver, loaded 682 empty crates of different varieties of Guinness, diverted the consignment and sold the goods off.

“The accused was sent to bring the goods from a customer in Ilorin in Kwara, but when he got to Ibadan, Oyo State, he sold the consignment to an illegal buyer,’’ he said.

Ayorinde said that the accused also forged the company’s transit vehicle record card receipt.

“The accused, who came to Lagos with an empty truck, conspired with Ugbeh, the store verifier, to forge the transit card to indicate that the goods were brought and offloaded into warehouse,” he said.

He said the offences contravened Sections 285, 363 and 409 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2011.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Section 363 prescribes 14 years jail term for forgery, while Section 285 prescribes three years for stealing.

The magistrate adjourned the case until May 15 for mention.