MONTEGO BAY, St James — A man accused of stealing high-value mobile phones from a Montego Bay store has begun compensating the victim, marking a shift in a case that has drawn attention for both its financial scale and personal backstory.
Romaine Christie, charged with simple larceny, is accused of taking three Samsung smartphones worth a combined $573,000 during a September 2025 incident. Court records indicate that after inspecting the devices, Christie abruptly left the premises with all three and was apprehended shortly afterward.
This week, the court was informed that Christie has paid $40,000 toward reimbursing the complainant. The payment followed mediation discussions aimed at resolving the matter without a full trial.
The case first gained prominence when Christie explained that he committed the theft to raise funds for his mother’s medical care. At an earlier hearing, his father appealed to the court for leniency and pledged to repay the cost of the phones. Christie told the court he sold the stolen devices in an attempt to assist with expenses related to his mother’s planned eye surgery.
That account was closely examined by then-presiding judge Natiesha Fairclough-Hylton, who noted that none of the proceeds had ultimately been used for the procedure. Christie responded that the operation had been postponed after doctors determined his mother’s blood pressure was too high to proceed.
With partial restitution now made, the case remains active. On Wednesday, presiding judge Kaysha Grant-Pryce set the matter for further proceedings. The court indicated that if full compensation is not completed, the case may still advance to trial.
