Deaf-mute man jailed on conviction of five hold-ups

A 52-year-old man who is deaf-mute has been jailed for four years after being convicted of carrying out five armed robberies.

The cases, which all happened in Zebbug, targeted Patrizio's hair salon, the Intimate underwear shop, De Rohan Pharmacy, Sta Marija Pharmacy, and  Crops green grocery.

The man was caught after his last attempted hold-up at Patrizio's hairdresser was foiled by owner Patrizio Parascandalo in January last year.

Dring the court proceedings, Mr Parascandalo had described how he had struggled with a hooded man who entered his shop, demanding money.

Mr Parsascandalo said the man had entered his shop, pointed a pistol at him and demanded money. He opened the till and gave him some cash.The hooded man then pointed his gun towards other people in the salon and then pointed it at a 12-year-old boy who was in the shop, before pointing it back at him (Parsascandalo).

At this point, Mr Parsascandalo said, he tried to wrestle the gun out of his hands. They both fell onto a glass partition, the glass smashed, and they fell to the floor.

In the struggle, the man's hood came off. The thief then ran out and Mr Parascandalo said he gave chase. He spotted his mother's cousin on the road and he joined him in the chase.

A few minutes later they saw the thief turn into a side street and they continued to run after him. The man pointed the gun aggressively at both of them and they gave up the chase.

When asked by the prosecution whether he could identify the thief, Mr Parsascandalo identified the accused.

His cousin also testified, corroborating the testimony.

Karen Delmar, an employee, said she had been washing a client's hair when the hooded man walked into the shop. Mr Parsascandalo gave him some money but the thief indicated he wanted more. When she saw that Mr Parascandalo was about to get into an argument with him, she ran out of the shop to call for help. When she returned, the police were already on site, and she saw broken glass on the floor.

The accused cannot be named by court order.

See also http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20110117/local/zebbug-batman-hailed-a-hero.345680