Accused raise HSBC case in protest at bail denial

Two men yesterday adamantly denied having stolen €8,500 in cash and sound equipment from a car, insisting in court there was not even a shred of evidence to support the charges filed against them.

Ryan Camenzuli, 25 and Victor Degabriele, 26, protested loudly at being remanded in custody and asked how the courts could have denied them bail but granted it to the two men accused of carrying out a botched heist on the headquarters of HSBC.

Their protest comes a few days after one of the men charged in the HSBC case, Darren Debono, was shot in the leg during an attempted robbery in Attard in which he allegedly took part.

Mr Camenzuli and Mr De­gabriele, who both hail from Cospicua, denied stealing €3,500 in cash and €5,000 worth of stereo equipment from a car parked in Tarxien on the night of ­December 1.

They were also charged with committing a crime during the operative period of a suspended jail term while Mr Degabriele denied breaching the conditions of a previous release.

During the arraignment, the two men interrupted the proceedings continuously saying there was not a shred of evidence against them. They also claimed they had alibis which would explain their whereabouts.

Magistrate Marseann Farrugia told the accused to keep quiet while their defence lawyers, Michael Sciriha and Mark Busuttil discussed bail.

The lawyers argued that besides there being no evidence against them, the court could grant bail against strict conditions and sizeable bail bonds which would act as a deterrent against breaching any of the bail conditions.

Police Inspector Spiridione Zammit requested bail to be denied on the grounds that the two accused were untrustworthy, as evident from their criminal records, and that a number of witnesses still have to testify.