A man who stole fire extinguishers from businesses and then sold them to other businesses was jailed on Monday.
Franklin Roy Romph, 42, of Vancouver was sentenced to 45 days in jail minus a credit of eight days he has been in custody since his arrest four days ago.
Courts generally award people in remand a two-for-one credit for time in pre-trial custody.
Romph pleaded guilty to three counts of fraud and one attempted fraud, theft of less than $5,000 and two counts of false pretenses.
Crown prosecutor Murray McPherson told provincial court that Romph started his scam on Oct. 20 in Red Deer at a pub in Riverside Meadows, a downtown restaurant and an Edgar Industrial business.
He approached employees in the various business pretending to be a representative of a company and the business needed to have a fire extinguisher near the bar for safety measures.
He produced a pre-authorized receipt and received $99 at one business and $84 at another. The Edgar business employee was alert and didn’t fall for the scam.
On Oct. 22 in Olds, Romph approached a pizza place with a stolen fire extinguisher and sold it for $115.50.
He then pilfered an extinguisher from a motel and tried to sell it to a nearby restaurant for $94 but was foiled.
The scam raised about $385.
Judge Bert Skinner heard that Romph has a lengthy history of fraud and stolen property convictions.
Romph, who court heard recently arrived in Alberta from Vancouver, is a crack cocaine addict and plans to enrol in a drug treatment program in Vancouver when released from jail.
Contact Jack Wilson at jwilson@www.reddeeradvocate.com