Five convicted of thefts from beaches

Five people were each placed on probation for three years today after admitting thefts from several beaches.

In the first arraignment, Leon Portelli, 18 of Mosta and a boy and a girl aged 17 and 16 who cannot be named because they are minors, admitted to stealing around €1,000 worth of items from Fekruna Beach in St Paul's Bay on Tuesday.

Police Inspector Therese Sciberras said the only reason they stole was because they were unemployed and needed money.

In a separate case, a couple, Alexia Margo Calleja, 33 of no fixed address, and Baldassare Perlotti, 41, an Italian, admitted to eight thefts in July and August from beaches in Sliema, Għadira and Għajn Tuffieħa. They stole wallets and mobile phones to fund their drug habit, the police told the court.

The couple have a three-year-old son living with a grandmother.