A well-known Valletta cinema that has been operating for years was shut after its alleged operator was yesterday charged with screening pornographic films.

The police seized almost 5,000 adult films in a raid on the infamous City Lights Capitol Cinema, which over the years had garnered a seedy reputation.

During the arraignment, the smartly dressed, 67-year-old pensioner Alexander Baldacchino pleaded not guilty to screening the films in public, selling them and using a projector and video machine illegally.

The cinema with a dirty but ornate façade is situated in St John's Street, just a few metres down from Republic Street and round the corner from the court house.

The arraignment was over in minutes and Mr Baldacchino was granted bail against a personal guarantee of €5,000. Police Inspector Raymond Aquilina prosecuted.

Lawyer Ivan Vella was defence counsel.

Sign up to our free newsletters

Get the best updates straight to your inbox:
Please select at least one mailing list.

You can unsubscribe at any time by clicking the link in the footer of our emails. We use Mailchimp as our marketing platform. By subscribing, you acknowledge that your information will be transferred to Mailchimp for processing.