Workplace phone thief facing stiff sentence
MONTEGO BAY, St James — A Kingston woman who pleaded guilty to stealing four cellular phones and a bank card from four of her co-workers will find out on June 11 the impact that a court-mandated social enquiry report will have on her sentencing.
Rayana Rowe appeared in the St James Parish Court before presiding judge Kaysha Grant-Pryce on Wednesday, charged with four counts of simple larceny.
According to court documents, all parties work at a prominent restaurant in Montego Bay.
It is alleged that, on March 21, the four complainants securely locked their Samsung Galaxy phones in their respective lockers but when they returned they discovered that the devices were missing. One of the complainants’ Scotiabank debit card was also missing.
The matter was reported to supervisors and, upon a review of the security footage, Rowe was observed accessing the lockers and removing the mobile phones.
A police report was subsequently filed, and when cautioned, Rowe reportedly said, “Officer, a frass mi did frass. Mi rent a come up and mi neva have any money, that’s why I did it.”
During the legal proceedings, the investigating officer informed the court that he had dialogue with Rowe, during which she disclosed that she had sold all the phones.
Meanwhile, the complainant whose bank card was stolen told the court that by the time she called the bank to freeze her account, Rowe had already spent more than $30,000. She said she would drop the charge if she receives reimbursement of the stolen funds.
Judge Grant-Pryce informed the complainant that, in order to avoid imprisonment, Rowe would have to compensate for the value of the phones as well as the amount of cash deducted from her account.
She also pointed out to the complainant that the case cannot be dismissed as the defendant had pleaded guilty, and that she would be moving forward.
Judge Grant-Pryce subsequently requested a social enquiry report in order to determine the most suitable sentence for Rowe, and postponed the sentencing to June 11.
Rowe was remanded until then.
