Bag snatcher jailed after opportunities for reform fail
A man who was convicted three years ago of having stolen two bags while their owners were swimming at Sliema had a six month jail term confirmed on appeal today, after a court declared that he had been given ample opportunities to reform.
Neil Andrew Vella had been convicted of stealing a bag belonging to Diana Schuler and another belonging to Emilie Langer.
On appeal, Mr Vella pleaded that the sentence of the first court was excessive, and that he had cooperated with the police at an early stage of proceedings. His counsel also argued that imprisonment would cost Mr Vella his job and everything he had achieved since.
The appeals court said that Mr Vella had been caught red handed. It noted that the punishment imposed by the Magistrates' court was close to the minimum. Furthermore, Mr Vella was dismissed by his employer as soon as these proceedings were started. The court said that Mr Vella had not listed what he had achieved since the original court sentence, and it resulted that while he was under arrest, he sought treatment at the Detox Centre, which meant he had a drug problem.
The court observed that Mr Vella had, on May 5, 2000, been found guilty of possession of heroin and cocaine and he was placed on probation for 18 months,
On April 12, 2006, he was again found guilty of possession of heroin and was given a six-month conditional discharge.
On November 23, 2008 he was convicted of possession of ecstasy and given another conditional discharge.
He had also been found guilty of theft and holding a person against its will, and had been condemned to a two-year jail term on March 15, 2005.
On June 12, 2007 he was convicted of theft and given a two-year conditional discharge.
The court said it was clear that Mr Vella had been given ample opportunities for reform but these had been useless.
Furthermore, it was unacceptable that people went to the beach worried that their bags could be stolen.
Therefore a prison term was appropriate and the decision of the first court was upheld.
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d caruana
Jul 28th 2010, 20:22
can you tell me where you put your car keys please?we had no pockets in our bathing suits!!we hope nobody steals your belongings and do not try to be funny with other people"s bad luck!!
doris caruana
Jul 28th 2010, 18:07
my husband and i were left stranded at the exiles with only our swimsiuts.thieves stole my bag in which we had our clothes,car and house keys,mobile phones,2 spectacles,wedding ring etc.people than told us there were robberies every single day.thank god the thieves were caught but we got nothing back and they only got 8 months in prison while we had to spend a lot of money (apart from the shock) to replace our stolen goods.these days we hardly ever go to the beach for fear of being robbed again!!!thieves should be ordered to pay for damages once caught!!!!
Massimo Costa
Jul 28th 2010, 18:56
Don't be so melodramatic. Almost everyone knows someone who has had goods stolen from Exiles. That is no reason not to go to the beach - all you have to do is be smarter than the thieves. Take with you only a towel, an ancient mobile which barely keeps its charge, some small change, and a car key. Leave everything else at home, and leave the house keys hidden inside the car.
M. Mallia
Jul 28th 2010, 22:36
So Mr Costa has just announced to the world at large where he leaves his house keys when he goes swimming. Smart move!
O R Busuttil
Jul 28th 2010, 17:58
"His counsel also argued that imprisonment would cost Mr Vella his job and everything he had achieved since"
Well, he's got one hell of a CV, I'll give you that