The post ‘Ras Ipa’ was allegedly stealing electricity for over 15 years appeared first on St. Lucia News Online.
Peter ‘Ras Ipa’ Isaac said he is innocent.
Well-placed sources said there are at least two sides to a story and President of the Saint Lucia Craft and Dry Goods Vendors Association, Peter Isaac, a.ka. Ras Ipa, who has been charged with electricity theft, has told his side of the story to the media, but did not tell the full and true story.
Isaac has been charged with abstracting of electricity in which he is accused of using another vendor’s electricity for over 15 years, the sources told St. Lucia News Online (SNO).
He is also expected to answer to charges of insulting words and obscene language, in which he allegedly cursed the vendor who reported him to the relevant authorities, after she discovered that she had been paying hers and Isaac’s electricity consumption for up to two decades, the sources said.
One of the sources, who is close to the investigation, explained the charges in detail.
“Those two charges were made by a vendor. What really happened is that he connected his switch to one of the vendor’s outlet. Now the vendor came complaining that she had been paying electricity from the inception, from the time the arcade was built. I think that is almost 19 years, but it is over 15 years, that she had been paying electricity, a high amount of electricity, and she realised that his outlet, his cord and electricity wire is tapped into her outlet from her booth. So when it was traced it ended up being in Ipa’s booth, and that is how that came about.
“So when the lady reported the matter – and that is when the Castries Constituency Council electrician went ahead and tested it and everything. He was denying that there’s no electricity in that outlet, he doesn’t have electricity, he don’t know when last he used electricity. And when he tested it, then he realized that, and then then he cut the wire.
“After that he went about cursing up the vendor. It’s a senior lady who could probably be his grandmother. He went about cursing up the lady, insulting her, calling her souse and all kinda thing. So those two other charges are as a result of that vendor.”
Isaac has denied all the charges. He said he had been paying for legal electricity connection, but that has since been disconnected.
He told HTS news: “I have never tampered with nothing like that. I had what you call an outlet there. In fact, I have an outlet there which I have there from when I had current running there. And I have everything to show that I was a person who had a legal right to use current in here until I decided, well listen there was some disparity in that whole thing. While I was paying $30 a month, there are persons who were paying $30 a month and they had refrigerators and so on running for like 24 hours, and I thought well there is no equity in that.”
The longtime vendor was reportedly served by a city constable on Tuesday, March 21 to appear in court on May 11, 2017 to answer to the charge of abstracting of electricity, as well as insulting words and obscene language.
Explaining the meaning of the charge of abstracting of electricity, the source said it is an offence in which a person dishonestly uses electricity without due authority, or dishonestly causes electricity to be wasted or diverted.
Section 62 of the Electricity Supply Act states that if any person without legal right, the proof of which shall be upon him or her, abstracts or causes to be abstracted, or diverts or causes to be diverted, any electricity, or consumes or uses any such electricity, knowing the same to have been wrongfully or unlawfully abstracted or diverted, such person commits an offence and is liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding $5,000 or to imprisonment with or without hard labour for a period not exceeding 12 months.
Battling the illegal use of electricity has been a top priority for Mayor of Castries Peterson D. Francis, who has been encouraging people to report any unlawful connections of power.
He also sent a stern warning to vendors and tenants of the Castries Constituency Council who were tapping electricity illegally.
This came after reports of reported illegal connection at the Vendor’s Arcade.
(18)
(3)The post ‘Ras Ipa’ was allegedly stealing electricity for over 15 years appeared first on St. Lucia News Online.