Three youngsters who threatened two women with knives, injuring one of them, have pleaded guilty to the charges brought against them but have been spared a jail sentence, despite breaching the conditions of previous releases. 

Libyan nationals Kahled Mahmud Abdulkasem, 19, and Mohamed Abungab, 22, and a 15-year-old Maltese boy from St Paul's Bay, opted to change their plea to guilty after having previously pleaded not guilty. 

The three had been arrested following a report filed by two woman who claimed that they had been robbed at knifepoint outside their Gzira home at 3.30am on May 21. 

The aggressors then escaped in a car belonging to one of the victims but were arrested shortly after.

The car's owner, a 41-year-old woman, said she has been sitting on the doorstep of her house when the three young men turned up, pushed her inside and threatened her and another woman, 68.

The men stole two knives, a mobile phone, €50 in cash and her car keys before driving off in the car - a Peugeot 306. A police patrol yesterday spotted the car in Tower Road, Sliema.

On noting the police, the three stopped the car in St Julian's and fled on foot.

The police initially arrested the 15-year-old and later arrested the Libyans. 

Handing down judgment, Magistrate Tonio Micallef Trigona noted that all three had previous convictions and had committed the crime during the operative terms of conditional discharges. Mr Abdulkasem had also breached a suspended sentence handed down in May 2014. 

The magistrate fined Mr Abdulkasem €2,336 and an additional fine of €116 for carrying a weapon during the commission of a crime. Moreover, he had his suspended jail term extended for a further four years. 

Mr Abungab and the 15-year-old were placed on probation for three years and also fined €116 for carrying the weapon. 

Police Inspectors Joseph Mercieca and Jonathan Ransley prosecuted. Lawyer Noel Bianco appeared for the Libyans while lawyer David Gatt appeared for the 15-year-old. 

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