Horse lover charged with attempted theft from stable

A horse-loving 54-year-old accused of trying to steal a karrozzin from a farm in Naxxar was caught red-handed by one of the owners who happened to be near the property at the time of the attempted theft, police sources said yesterday.

The man allegedly stopped his van near Salina Farm and moved the horse-drawn cab towards the gate with the help of an unidentified man, the sources said.

One of the owners of the farm, which houses at least 10 race- horses, was on his way to Buġibba and happened to pass by the stables when he noticed the gates open and stopped to investigate.

Seeing this, the two men sped away but not before the owner noted the van’s number plate.

Mario Caruana, of Tarxien, yesterday pleaded not guilty to the attempted theft of the €2,500 horse-drawn cab.

Defence lawyer Josè Herrera told the court this was completely “out of character” for his client who had no serious offences on his criminal record and had never had anything to do with theft.

The defence counsel said his client loved horses and was willing to abide by the conditions laid down by the court.

Magistrate Joseph Apap Bologna granted Mr Caruana bail against a personal guarantee of €1,000 and ordered him not to go anywhere near the racecourse in Marsa and not to speak to the victims.