A serial burglar who has been stealing from National Youth Service (NYS) personnel at the NYS headquarters in Ruaraka pleaded guilty before a Makadar court.

Stephen Ochieng’ admitted to stealing and handling stolen goods belonging Anthony Munene Njeru. The suspect broke into Njeru’s house at dawn and stole underwear, a subwoofer, and a claw hammer, all valued at Sh4,900.

A guard at the NYS headquarters spotted the thief and raised an alarm leading to his arrest.

At the time, shortly before 5 am, Njeru was still asleep and unaware that his house had been broken into and his underwear stolen.

In court, Makadara chief magistrate Heston Nyaga remembered convicting Ochieng’ for a similar offence in 2016 and described him as the spiderman of NYS.

“He must be another Spiderman after the one who has tormented the residents of Kilimani in Nairobi only that this one can be termed as the Spiderman of NYS,” Nyaga noted

“Having proven that the previous term has not taught him a lesson, I think a larger sentence may do so,” he added.

The court sentenced Ochieng’ to three years in jail.

Interestingly, three of his accomplices are serving death sentences for robbing him. They had reportedly disagreed on a sharing formula after a successful heist at NYS in 2016 before his accomplices armed themselves and violently robbed him.

In the 2016 case, Ochieng’ had admitted to charges of stealing a TV and a mobile phone valued at Sh55,000 from Fridah Opiyo Odongo’s house and was jailed for two years after being arrested while selling the items to a police officer.

The convict is said to have been brought up inside the NYS headquarters where his father worked before he retired.