A man who had no money for food because his boss refused to pay him admitted stealing a woman’s handbag from Paceville.

Abdiaziz Hassan Ibrahim, 37, a Somali refugee, said he was hungry and had no cash.

The theft took place in Paceville on Saturday night. The handbag belonged to a woman from Birżebbuġa.

Magistrate Carol Peralta told the man that, rather than stealing, he should have reported his boss to the police.

He handed him a one-year suspended sentence and warned him not to do it again.

Mr Ibrahim has been in Malta since 2012 and this was his first offence.