A jobless man and ex-convict, Valentine Thomas, 30, has been arraigned before a Lagos Magistrate Court for allegedly eating food and drinking wines with his two girlfriends at Victoria Crown Palace Hotel, VCP, Victoria Island, Lagos without money in his pocket.
The arrest of the accused was ordered by the Divisional Police Officer, DPO in charge of Bar Beach Division, CSP Olusegun Ajamolaya following a complaint by the management of Victoria Crown Palace Hotel represented by Daniel Eyirisan.
The police also accused the suspect from Tiv town, Benue State, North Central Nigeria of stealing a Techno Canon C9 model valued at N56,000 belonging to his lawyer, Henry Orarotimi in Yaba.
Police alleged that the lawyer lost his phone to the accused when he begged him at Yaba bus stop as his lawyer to give him the phone to call the person who would bring money for him to perfect his bail when he was arrested on 8 August, 2017 for eating food and drinking beer worth N22,500 at Penisula Hotel, Lekki and escaped.
The accused, a resident of Pako GRA, Ogudu, was arraigned before an Igbosere Magistrate Court on a three-count charge of felony to wit, obtaining food and assorted drinks valued at N173,450 and failed to pay knowing fully well that there was no money and stealing.
Police prosecutor, Cyriacus Osuji informed the court in charge No L/3/2018 that the accused, an ex-convict committed the offence at Victoria Crown Hotel, Victoria Island.
Osuji told the court that the accused went to Victoria Crown Hotel with two girl friends to eat food with chicken, snail, fish and drink bailey and Hennessy all valued at N173,450.
He said that when the hotel workers demanded for the payment of the food and drinks from the accused, he told them that he had no money on him because he was jobless, while the hotel workers invited the police to arrest him while his two girl friends managed to escape.
Osuji said that the accused also tricked his lawyer and collected a Techno phone valued N56,000 from him to call someone and escaped with the phone to sell it.
Osuji said that the offences the accused committed were punishable under sections 411, 314 and 287 of the criminal Laws of Lagos State, 2015.
The accused, however, pleaded not guilty to the alleged crime and Senior Magistrate A.T Omoyele granted him bail in the sum of N100,000 with two sureties in like sum.
Omoyele adjourned the case till 22 February, 2018 for mention and ordered that the defendant be kept at Ikoyi Prison till he perfected the bail conditions.
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