A Bulgarian beggar who admitted asking people for alms at The Strand in Sliema was conditionally discharged for a year.

Maria Varbanova, 19, pleaded guilty to the charges of living a vagabond life and molesting people to give her money in a public place.

Police Inspector Jason Sultana said Ms Varbanova had been warned some days earlier when the police had received a number of reports about her.

On Saturday, they received another complaint that Ms Varbanova was sitting next to a bus stop and begging for money.

Lawyer Mark Mifsud Micallef, who appeared for Ms Varbanova as legal aid, told Magistrate Gabriella Vella it was not illegal to beg in Bulgaria. Acknowledging that ignorance of the law was not an excuse, he said Ms Varbanova started begging when she arrived in Malta.

She was conditionally discharged for a year.

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