Plainclothes wardens have taken the interpretation of a bylaw to a new level by fining a man for disposing of his domestic waste in a transparent plastic bag rather than a black one, Times of Malta has learnt.

The man is contesting the €46.59 fine he was slapped with by a plainclothes warden who accused him of disposing waste in a green skip in a bag that was not among those approved by the Birkirkara council.

But council mayor Joanne Debono Grech knew of no such provision in the law, adding that wardens ought to be taught the law.

Insisting on not being named, the man, 28, told Times of Malta he received the fine at 7.01am on Tuesday last week as he was about to throw the rubbish in the green skip, down the road from his house in Triq il-Qasab in Birkirkara.

When contacted, the mayor said she would immediately speak to the warden company “since this is becoming too much”.

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