In Nevis, a young man was arrested for stealing. Based on the items on exhibit by the Police, this was no ordinary petty stealing. This was organised crime; grand theft. He was not the only thief, as only two much of the stuff required muscle power beyond the prowess of this young man (boy, really) and he required transportation that was supplied by somebody(s). He even had a house (more warehouse than dwelling house) with even the front door of that house being stolen property. This was an organised ring of thieves.
First off, we congratulate the RSKNPF for breaking up the ring. That they have done so without incriminating any member of the public is also great. We also congratulate the victims who reported these matters to the police, knowing that they would have to wait for a while for justice, if at all. (Someone jokingly said that the police may have to conduct an auction sale to dispose of some of the items, because some victims have already replaced some of the stolen items. But that is a different story).
Secondly, we condemn anybody and everybody who ever bought stuff from these guys, however much of a bargain it was. It is actions like these that encouraged them to go bigger and bigger. The old adage applies: the harbourer is worse than the thief.
The parents of this boy must be roundly condemned too. We cannot accept that when the boy was living at home that the parent(s) didn’t see the signs that this boy was engaged in bad behaviour. We also refuse to believe that the parents didn’t visit these boys, didn’t see the accumulation of stuff and didn’t question them. But then, for some parents, their children can do no wrong. In fact, just recently, a Judge cursed out a mother over her parenting skills.
When the spate of stealing was happening, it became popular to blame it on immigrants. Perhaps it was the easy option as we felt that larceny on so grand a scale was alien to Nevis, and such behaviour had to have been imported. After all, everybody in Nevis knows everybody and is related to each other if the ancestry is properly traced. Those Bath boys have put paid to that notion, and the last vestige of the age of innocence is gone forever.
We urge the police not to relax their vigilance. We expect more arrests in this case. There is no ring that consists of one. More persons are involved. Go find them.
