The Mbour High Court sentenced a student, holding a master's degree in English, to a six-month suspended prison sentence for thefts committed in telephone shops.

According to the court proceedings, the defendant went to a shop in the Mbour market and asked to examine an iPhone. Taking advantage of a moment of inattention from the employees, he grabbed the device, valued at 350,000 CFA francs, before fleeing.

Five days later, the young man went to another shop in Somone with the same intention. That's when his bad luck caught up with him: both businesses actually belonged to the same owner. Thanks to the security camera footage from the first theft, the owner immediately identified the suspected thief as soon as he entered the second establishment.

Arrested and brought before the court, the student fully admitted to the acts. "I regret it and I ask for forgiveness," he declared in court. During the proceedings, the presiding judge also noted that the defendant had previously used a similar method to defraud a shopkeeper at the Castors market.

In court, the defendant's father attempted to explain his son's behavior by stating that he suffered from mental health issues and was under regular medical care. Anxious to make amends for the harm caused by his child, he fully reimbursed the plaintiff for the cost of the phone.

Taking into account his confession, his state of health and his attitude at the hearing, the court finally found him guilty and sentenced him to six months in prison, suspended.