Tuesday, 5 February 2013

Lagos court sentences 30 beggars to prison for begging alms

The Special Offences Court in Alausa area of Ikeja has sent 30 beggars to Kirikiri and Badagry Prisons for soliciting for alms and other offences.

They were charged to court for constituting nuisance in public by begging for alms.

The government says it is no longer going to be business as usual for the beggars as offenders will be prosecuted. Some of the count charges against the beggars included conducting themselves as disorderly persons without visible means of livelihood and thus committed an offence under the criminal law of Lagos State.

The beggars, 39 in number pleaded guilty to the offences and were consequently sent to Kirikiri and Badagry Prisons for one month pending when the final judgment would be delivered by the judge. Nine of them, as a result of their disabilities were rejected by prison officials and were taken to the Lagos State Rehabilitation Home, Majidun, Ikorodu on the outskirts of Lagos.

No comments:

Post a Comment