A man from Cospicua this morning pleaded not guilty to 53 charges filed against him – one for theft of copper cable from Enemalta and 52 for damaging people’s property.

According to the charges filed, the damage amounts to tens of thousands of euros.

Gordon Grima, 35, was accused of damaging an Enemalta sub-station to the tune of €4,000 last Monday and stealing €1,500 worth of copper cable.

Defence legal aid lawyer Anthony Cutajar asked the court for his client to be examined by a psychiatrist and for him to be held at the forensic unit at Mount Carmel.

A request for bail was not made and once it was known that he would be remanded in custody, Mr Grima’s girlfriend rushed into the court room crying.

She tried to kiss Mr Grima but was told by an escorting officer to sit down. She sat at the back of the public gallery and then walked out.

Once the case was over, she rushed back in again still crying and kissed him on the lips.

During investigations, other cases of copper cable thefts came to light and another four people were arraigned for unrelated incidents.

The accused – Sandro Degabriele, 31, Jean Pierre Mamo, 27, Richard Decelis, 18 and Domenic Fava, 38, all from Cospicua, pleaded not guilty to copper cable thefts from the Corradino Industrial Estate and Palumbo Drydocks.

Mr Mamo and Mr Decelis were granted bail against a personal guarantee of €3,000 each.

Mr Degabriele and Mr Fava were remanded in custody.