ARMED ROBBERY IS NOT A CRIME OF HOW MUCH YOU STEAL.

The case of the 32-year-old vulcanizer that was sentenced to death by hanging on Tuesday, the 17^th day of January, 2023, by the High Court of Lagos State seems to have gotten a lot of people talking.

The issue most people are having with the sentencing is that the said convict was found guilty of robbing his victim of the sum of N57,000.00 (Fifty-Seven Thousand Naira only). To a lot of people this is not enough for anyone to be sentenced to death by hanging. Some online comments read “our politicians that steal way more than that are walking freely”. Others are pleading for him, because they believe he didn’t commit any other crime and thus deserves a second chance. Nigerians are obviously pissed with the judgment because to them, why should anyone be hanged over that sum.

Allow me to explain somethings to you. Judges are not moved by pity and they are bound by the law. Secondly, when one is charged with the offence of armed robbery, the issue at hand is not the amount he stole. The main thing to be considered is whether he was armed when he obtained the item from his victim. Another problem is that, he need not be armed with a gun. Any harmful object enough to secure threat and endanger the life of the victim, to the extend that the victim has no choice but to hand over his/her possession would qualify as arm, and hence he would be guilty of armed robbery.

The punishment for armed robbery as prescribed by section 295 (2) of the Criminal Law of Lagos state 2015 is death by hanging; and this is similar with all states.  It is the capital offence, and no judge has the liberty to act otherwise. Once a conviction for armed robbery is secured, the fate of the convict is sealed.

The victim had told the court that the convict and his accomplice (the person who was with him, who is currently on the run) had been armed with a pair of scissors, did you see that, a pair of scissors.

In fact, you should know the following:

1. If you are not armed, but in company of any person so armed when he was committing the offence, just know you are in for it. That is armed robbery, and it is death sentence.
2. If you in anyway at the time of the robbery, or immediately before or after the time of the robbery, assisted the offender who was armed, you are in for it. Even if you did as little as drove the car that used in the armed robbery operation, just know you are in for it.
3. If you help hide the individuals involved in armed robbery, knowing fully well that they just committed the act, and are hiding from the authorities, just know that you are an accomplice and would go in for it.
4. You are considered armed once you have any firearms, or any offensive weapon that is not firearms, or chemical material, or you are in company of any person so armed.

You might ask, what if the person robs without any arm? Well, that is just robbery and the person will be sentenced to nothing less than 21 years imprisonment. It could be more. The truth is, armed robbery is not a crime of how much you robbed the victim of.

Lastly the idea that “our politicians steal more, and they are not sentenced to death” should not come to your head at all. Do you know why? It is the punishment prescribed for an offence in the law that the judge gives. So, if an offence has 20 years imprisonment as its punishment, no judge has the power to sentenced the convict to death by hanging. In Nigeria, the crime of bribery and corruption, money laundering and the likes, which most of the “said politicians” you are making reference to are usually charged with, do not have death by hanging as the punishment.

I believe with this, you understand the law a little better, and would not join the crowd. I also hope this scares you away from participating in any form robbery, let alone of “armed robbery”. There is no plea that can change the fate of an armed robbery convict. You might say it is harsh, it is unfair, it is sad, but the “Law” is the “Law”.