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A security guard at a technical secondary school in Zinj, who stole car engines used for teaching students, has been sentenced to three years in prison.
Despite being tasked with protecting the school over the summer vacation, the defendant stole a total of 39 car parts over the course of 11 days, sneaking them away, bit by bit, during his night shift duties.
The High Criminal Court ordered the 55-year-old Bahraini to return BD1,735 to the school, which is what the stolen items were valued at, and fined him an additional BD1,735.
He sold some of the parts for BD5.300 at a scrap shop, according to the verdict, and used the money to buy chai karak and a box of cigarettes, then fill up his car with petrol.
The defendant earlier told judges at court that he thought he was ‘clearing the scrap out’ when he took the engines. He denied charges of theft and of exploiting his duty to guard the school and its property, despite previously admitting to them in prosecution questioning.
His lawyer told the court that his client was ‘too old’ to have carried all this equipment, and that it was ‘impossible’ and ‘defied logic’ that he could fit a whole engine in his car’s boot.
Police conducted an investigation at the school and found no damage or signs of breaking-and-entering upon inspecting the campus’s metal fence.
Fingers were pointed at the defendant by members of staff, and he was summoned by the school’s administration to discuss the matter but did not appear for the meeting.
According to a policeman who headed the investigation, he was wanted by several police stations on suspicion of various drug charges.
Policemen went to his house while he was on night shift and reportedly found some of the missing equipment, the officer testified.
The GDN earlier reported that security cameras captured footage of the man taking the equipment towards his car. In one of the clips, he reportedly appeared to be in a state of exertion, sweating as he was carrying a heavy engine.
The Bahraini took 11 car engines, four manual transmission motors, four engine head gaskets, 12 rear axles and eight differential gears.
Technical secondary schools in Bahrain offer vocational and industrial training for boys only. Students can choose from several tracks beside automotive mechanics such as electronics, welding and fabrication, air conditioning and cooling, diesel engines, electric power distribution, appliances maintenance, telecommunication, machining or instrumentation.
zainab@gdnmedia.bh
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