A habitual thief repeatedly swiped phones out of the hands of students as he rode past on his bike.
Over a couple of weeks, Adekunle Adebusuyi stole five phones, one laptop and one bike. Each of the victims were using the devices as he took his chance to swipe them.
Only the laptop, which belonged to a female student and contained all of her university work, was recovered.
The 18-year-old pleaded guilty to six counts of theft from a person and one count of theft of a pedal cycle, claiming he did it to get his drugs debt ‘out of the way. Adebusuyi, of Rusholme, was handed a community order.
Prosecutor Olivia Saul told Manchester Magistrates’ Court: “There are seven thefts, all of which are of a similar mode of offending.
“The defendant, on all of these occasions, has approached the victims whilst travelling on his bike and then grabbed the phones, or in one incident a laptop, out of the hands of the victims. This all occurred outside the University of Manchester and took place over a period of weeks.”
One student who had her laptop stolen said it contained all of her homework and coursework.
The University of Manchester
(Image: Jason Roberts /Manchester Evening News)
“This was taken away from me and I have not been able to complete my university work. This has caused me a lot of inconvenience,” she said.
Adebusuyi was said to have five previous convictions for 10 offences on his record, including five of which were for theft between 2021 and 2022. In a similar vein, he had swiped items from the hands of unsuspecting victims.
The court was told by Adebusuyi’s solicitor, Jane Shaw, he began offending after falling into a drug debt. She said there was a ‘clear prospect of rehabilitation’.
“He knows his life has to change,” she added.
Addressing Adebusuyi in the dock, District Judge Jane Hamilton asked him: “Do you realise how seriously these matters can be looked at today?”
“Yes,” he muttered.
“The prosecution told me what the sentencing guidelines are, she said they are up to 36 weeks in custody. I can send you to prison today – you don’t want that do you?” the judge asked him.
“Not really,” was his reply.
“How do you think those people feel when they’re talking on their mobile phones and it is stolen out of their hands?” she pressed.
(Image: Manchester Evening News)
Adebusuyi said: “Not very nice – distraught innit. I’m not very good with words.”
District Judge Hamilton asked: “Did you think about how they would feel at the time?”
The defendant answered: “I sort of pushed that away when doing things. I was just trying to get my debt out of the way, I didn’t want to do it.”
The judge stated she was giving Adebusuyi ‘one opportunity’ as he had gotten himself a job at a photography studio. He was handed an 18-month community order and ordered to complete 29 sessions of the Building Choices programme, as well as 180 hours unpaid work. He must also pay £199 in court costs.
Adebusuyi, of Deyne Avenue, was handed a two year criminal behaviour order, banning him from entering the area around the university and prohibited from being in possession of a phone that is not registered to him or someone known to him.