Alert off-duty policeman arrests weekend hold-ups suspect

A worried looking Libyan man was yesterday charged with a string of hold-ups in Swieqi and in St Paul's Bay that left victims shocked and angry after they were held at gunpoint.

Some seven victims in separate incidents reported similar incidents. A 4X4 pulled up next to them and a passenger emerged pointing a gun at them and demanding they hand over whatever they had in their possession.

According to police sources, the suspect was given away by the vehicle, a silver Toyota landcruiser, which was spotted in Mosta on Monday by a plainclothes policeman on his off day. The officer followed the vehicle, which allegedly turned out to be stolen, and eventually arrested the driver, 38-year-old Libyan national Ismael Habesh.

The haul was found the same day by an Englishman who stumbled upon a suspicious-looking package in Buġibba. He untied the bundle to find mobile phones, other items and balaclavas. He took them to the police station and they realised that most of the items belonged to the victims of a series of hold-ups reported over the weekend.

Mr Habesh was charged with stealing the vehicle, violently resisting the police and carrying a firearm without a licence.

Magistrate Antonio Micallef Trigona took into consideration Mr Habesh's criminal record and the 23 charges he faces and remanded him in custody.

The police are still investigating another two men in connection with the crime.