Three jailed over hold-ups

Three men were yesterday each jailed for three years and two months after they admitted to their involvement in two hold-ups.

Kevin Zammit, 30, of Birkirkara, Claudio Mallia, 23, of Valletta and Anthony Galea, 41, of Delimara pleaded guilty to all 14 charges brought against them.

Zammit and Mallia were charged with stealing Lm200 in cash and other items during a hold-up at Penny Lane Pharmacy in Swieqi on March 1 and Lm400 during a second hold-up from an Mtarfa lotto booth on March 3.

They were also charged with robbing Maria Antonia Gerada of her purse on March 5.

Zammit and Galea were charged with stealing Brian Pace's car from Sliema, trying to burgle Midway Store and stealing a leather pouch on March 9. Zammit was also charged with breaking into three cars while Mallia was charged with breaching the conditions of a previous release.

All three were charged with the possession of a weapon at the time of the commission of the hold-ups, keeping and carrying the weapon without a licence and keeping several people against their will.

Magistrate Consuelo Scerri Herrera noted that the three men were not first time offenders and had a drug addiction problem. She also noted that they had cooperated with the police and filed a guilty plea.

The magistrate added that she could not ignore the impact of such behaviour on society.

She concluded that a jail term was appropriate in the circumstances and recommended that the prison authorities assist the men to overcome their drug problem.

Police Inspectors Angelo Caruana and Paul Bond prosecuted.