Abomey-Calavi: five years of solid imprisonment for two audacious thieves
The Abomey-Calavi Court of First Instance delivered its verdict on Thursday, August 21, 2025, in a case that aroused surprise and indignation. Two individuals, aged 37 and 28, were sentenced to five years in prison and fined 150,000 CFA francs for a series of thefts committed in the municipality, including one within the Zinvié police station itself, reports Banouto.
SUMMARY
The charges against the two convicts reveal unusual audacity. In the night, they broke into the courtyard of the Zinvié police station to attempt to steal a motorcycle belonging to a police officer. Finding that the contact lock impeded steering, they moved the vehicle outside the premises of the station to force the system and start the engine.
The team didn’t stop there. In late July 2025, the two accomplices committed multiple offenses in a single day. The first theft took place in Aglassa, where they took a mobile phone being charged in a shop. A few hours later, they snatched a woman’s purse in Glo-Djigbé. The victim, carrying 110,000 CFA francs, alerted the locals, leading to the arrest of the two criminals.
A Heavy Judicial Past
According to police investigations, both men are repeat offenders. The older man, a motorcycle-taxi driver and father of four children, had already been in trouble with the law. His accomplice, aged 28 and father of two children, has also admitted his active participation in the three thefts. The investigations recovered the stolen motorcycle and phone.
In court, the defendants pleaded guilty and begged for the court’s mercy. But considering the severity of the offenses and recidivism, the judge pronounced a sentence of five years in closed prison, along with a fine of 150,000 CFA francs. The two convicts must also return the 110,000 CFA francs to the victim.
Having been in pre-trial detention for three weeks, they will return to prison to serve their sentence. However, they do have 15 days to appeal the decision.
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