Petty theft charge after 20 years behind bars

A man who helped trigger an explosion to claim insurance money some 20 years ago, in an incident which killed a mother and her baby, was back in court yesterday charged with theft.

Silvio Pace, 42, of Ħamrun was originally jailed for life together with another three men but the sentence was reduced to 20 years on appeal.

The tragedy occurred in Paola in 1992, when Mr Pace and another man, Vincent Spiteri, 59, of Paola, were instructed by 58-year-old John Polidano to set fire to his Oxford Photo Studio in an attempt to defraud the insurance company. Chemicals in the photographic studio caught fire and triggered off an explosion which brought down the entire building killing Yvette Bonnici, 24, and her son Sean, who was just 19 months old. The Labour club adjacent to the studio was extensively damaged.

In an arraignment yesterday, Mr Pace and Shaun Debono, 38, also of Ħamrun, pleaded not guilty to stealing some €330 worth of tools from a house in their hometown.

Mr Pace also denied relapsing while Mr Debono denied breaching the conditions of a previous release.

Standing in the dock wearing a T-shirt emblazoned with the words “stealth tiger” Mr Pace had at first decided to admit to the charges. Mr Debono, sporting a rather unusual tattooed left eyebrow, also admitted the charge initially but both men decided to change their pleas after the prosecution and defence counsels discussed the case with the magistrate at the Bench.

Lawyer José Herrera requested bail, to which Police Inspector Kevin Farrugia objected on the grounds that there might be tampering of evidence.

Magistrate Gabriella Vella granted Mr Pace bail against a personal guarantee of €15,000 and a deposit of €200 while his co-accused was granted bail against a deposit of €100 and personal guarantee of €10,000.

The magistrate warned the men about the seriousness of breaching bail conditions. Lawyer Veronique Dalli also appeared for the accused.