This archive report was first published on 7 October 2019.
On October 7, 2019, the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) issued a warning to the public over buying electronic gadgets like laptops, mobile phones, and TV sets from unregistered dealers.
The DCI advises members of the public to purchase electronic goods from dealers who have a fixed physical address and have conspicuously displayed the requisite authorization documents, including licenses, permits, and other local or national approvals.
Unregistered dealers, the DCI notes, often trade in stolen goods, some of which have been robbed from murdered victims.
"It is risky and dangerous to buy any electronic device from suspicious outlets," a statement reads. "Most are those who buy stolen items from armed gangsters who have violently robbed innocent citizens and in the process kill and maim them."
According to the DCI, anyone found in possession of a stolen electronic gadget risks prosecution, including the maximum sentence.
"Being found with suspected stolen property, you suffer immediate consequences of the actual criminal, which may escalate to death sentences," said the DCI.
The DCI also urged electronic dealers to record the details of sold goods for security purposes and to seize the IT/ICT technology to mark every electronic gadget bought by a customer as a value-added incentive with indelible initials for safety and security purposes.
