The police say they have placed a dent in the operations of a group of individuals who have been operating in downtown Kingston, following the arrest and conviction
of a man who authorities say has been a key member of an underground network of criminals who have been terrorising vendors in the busy commercial hub.
Reports are that the man was held days ago when his luck ran out through a technological initiative that had been taken by a woman who fell victim to the robber, and the help of a team of police officers who frequent and are very familiar with downtown Kingston.
The man, identified as Oshane Colley, a 19-year-old resident of a Kingston address, was taken before the court last week following his arrest and slapped with a nine-month prison sentence for larceny.
Reports are that earlier in July, the female fell victim to him while walking in downtown Kingston, when she was held up and robbed of her cell phone and other items by the main culprit.
Information gleaned by Loop News is that the man, after escaping from where he robbed the phone, went to a location and was using the device, but unknown to him, the phone had a security feature which involved it taking the photograph of any unauthorised user and sending the picture in an email to the registered owner of the phone.
The woman went home after the robbery and after checking her email, saw the picture of the culprit.
It is reported that the woman told a neighbour of hers about the incident and the neighbour gave her the name of a police sergeant whom she went to in downtown Kingston and report the matter.
Once the woman made contact with the cop and showed him the photo of the man, all reportedly fell in place for the downfall of the culprit.
The policeman reportedly immediately recognised the man in the photo, and with his team members, was able to track down the individual at to his home.
When the woman appeared in court last week and was asked to explain how she got back the stolen phone, she explained how she was told about the officer who is called ‘Ivan’ by a neighbor, who said he was a policeman who was well-known and trusted by many persons in the downtown Kingston commercial hub.
“When I reported the matter to him the officer, immediately he said he knew the attacker, and was able to track him down to his home, and the phone (was) recovered,” said the woman in court.
The court was also told that the attacker was a repeat offender who had just months earlier spent time behind bars for a similar crime.