A 64-year-old man from Santa Venera was cleared of threatening workers who were painting roadsigns outside his house after a court ruled that telling them not to return to his street did not amount to a threat.

The man, Peter Bonavia, was also cleared of insulting a clerk and another public official at his local council when he complained that the workers  - who painted the road - were a "bunch or idiots" after they wrote the word SLOP instead of STOP on the road.

Magistrate Natasha Galea Sciberras noted that the insults were not directed at the local council staff, as listed in the charges, but at the workers who were not public officials.

The magistrate heard how the incident happened on January 7 last year when workers went to paint the road outside Mr Bonavia's house. When Mr Bonavia drove into his garage that day he realised that he left a trail of tyre marks.  He then noticed that workers had painted over newly painted yellow lines and the black paint was still fresh.

He sprinkled saw dust over the wet paint to absorb  it. The following day, when he got home, he realised he same thing happened - the workers had been sent back to repaint the area.

The workers told the court that Mr Bonavia told them: "mind you dare come back and paint again." He then went to the local council where he told the clerk and another employee there what happened and that he would hold the council  responsible. Before leaving the council he told the two staff members that the workers were a "bunch of idiots."

Lawyers Jason Azzopardi and Kris Busietta represented Mr Bonavia.