Criminal offences against property

Offences against property include theft, robbery and burglary.

All three offences involve the taking away of property belonging to another but robbery involves a face to face meeting of the robber and victim.{{more}}

Theft is the taking away of something dishonestly from another person with the intention of permanently depriving that person of that item. It may be an item left on the owner’s premises, at the work place, or any public place and may include money, furniture, grocery, jewellery and others.

For example, if a person leaves money in his/her bag in the dressing room while he is on the playing field and it is taken dishonestly by another person with the intention of permanently depriving him of that money that person would be liable for theft. If a person is found guilty of theft he is liable to imprisonment for two years if his case is heard before the magistrate court and ten years if heard before the High Court. He would be asked to return the items if he still has them in his possession or to pay compensation if he had already disposed of them.

Robbery is a much more serious crime because it actually involves the robber confronting someone with a weapon. The weapon could be a knife, gun or any sharp instrument.

The victim is assaulted and is forced to hand over whatever the robber demands. A robbery is a painful experience and may lead to the killing of the victim if he/she attempts to resist. Most often persons attacked would assess the situation quickly and hand over whatever the robber demands, but not without taking a good look at the attacker. The problem is that robbers sometimes wear masks. Even though the robber does not use the gun or it is a toy gun he/she will be liable for robbery provided he has the intention.

Burglary is another serious crime. Anyone who enters a building or an inhabited vessel or vehicle as a trespasser with the intention of committing an offence whether it is stealing, or inflicting bodily harm on some one, or assaulting a woman and actually commits an act is guilty of burglary. Any one found guilty of burglary is liable to a sentence of imprisonment for fourteen years.

If the burglar carries with him/her any weapon, firearm or explosive he is guilty of aggravated burglary and liable to imprisonment for life. If the person committing the above named crimes is a juvenile he cannot be imprisoned. The law provides for that person to be placed in a special school or under the supervision of his parents and for his parents to pay compensation for the goods stolen.

The statistics recorded by the police show a steady increase of burglaries over the ten year period from 826 cases in 1990 to 1,759 cases in 2000. The figures peaked in 2001 with a record of 2,172 cases. The statistics however show a fall in 2004 with some 1,563 cases. The statistics for theft show also an increase from 1,872 cases in 1990 to 2,437 in 2000. The figures in 2004 fell to 2,017 cases.

There are always persons who would have designs on other people’s property but if they would suppress their urges and think about the trouble the owner might have gone through to obtain them then they might refrain from trespassing.