Businessman charged for having stolen manhole covers, T&T
A 57-year-old businessman of Port-of-Spain has been released on bail after being charged with having five stolen maintenance hole covers.
The team of officers, led by Sgt McShine, was reportedly on a search warrant exercise when they executed one at Ramlackhan’s two-story building, on George Street, in Port-of-Spain.
They allegedly found a quantity of copper and the maintenance hole covers, reported stolen by the Port-of-Spain City Corporation.
Veja Ramlackhan was charged with receiving and unlawful possession of stolen items by PC Thomas of the Port-of-Spain City Task Force and was granted $50,000 bail by a Justice of the Peace (JP).
According to reports, Ramlakhan of St Augustine was arrested by officers at the Port-of-Spain City Police on Saturday evening.
Ramlakhan is scheduled to appear in court on July 12.
Contacted yesterday, Port-of-Spain mayor Joel Martinez confirmed the police began investigating the stolen maintenance hole covers after he noticed several missing in downtown Port-of-Spain last week.
“I was disgusted to find a citizen of Port-of-Spain was found to be involved in the stealing of the assets of the city,” Martinez said.
He said that the police officers checked CCTV footage and visited several scrap iron yards until they eventually made the breakthrough in the case.
While Martinez admitted that the corporation had encountered persons stealing street and traffic signs, it only noticed the stolen maintenance hole covers last week.
Martinez stated that the corporation would be reinstalling the covers early this week as their absence poses serious risks to drivers and pedestrians.
He said he was grateful the police could recover the maintenance hole covers. The corporation would have had to incur high costs to replace them because they are constructed using special heavy-duty steel.
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