‘Lookout’ man in vehicle theft spared jail term

The “lookout man” in the theft of a car yesterday was spared jail on the condition he served 240 hours community service. If Jason Mohammed, 22, fails to do so he will be sent to prison for 12 months. Explaining what community service was, San Fernando Fourth Court Magistrate Margaret Alert said: “You sweat off your misdeeds by physical labour.”

She told him a community service officer would decide what type of work he did. Alert, who found him guilty of larceny of a vehicle last Friday, said she decided on community service because at the time of the offence he was 17 years old. Mohammed was charged by PC Narine Bisnath.

In a confession statement Mohammed said a man he knew offered him $5,000 to be the “lookout” man while the man and his friends stole a $140,000 Frontier pick-up. It was stolen from the yard of Rennie Lookpath at Merlie Street, La Romaine, on July 15, 2008.

However, Mohammed pleaded not guilty. He claimed he was tricked and beaten by the police into signing the three-page confession statement. In asking for leniency yesterday, Mohammed’s attorney Ainsley Lucky said he (Mohammed) was at a vulnerable age and was influenced by his peers. “He fell prey to the lure of financial benefit.” Saying Mohammed left school at Standard One, Lucky said his client worked as the air condition technician and was sorry.