A 41-year-old man under psychiatric care has been remanded in custody after pleading not guilty to assaulting two police officers in his home town yesterday.

A dishevelled and bruised Raymond Zammit from Qormi was also charged with violently resisting arrest, illegally carrying a knife, slightly injuring the PC Chetcuti and PC Dingli, disobeying orders and breaching the peace.

Sources said Mr Zammit began shouting while holding a knife in St Sebastian square at around 8pm when a uniformed police officer, PA Alfred Chetcuti approached him.

The officer tried to calm him down but Mr Zammit managed to take the pepper spray from the policeman and ran away.

A plain-clothed policeman, PC Charles Dingli also tried to intervene but Mr Zammit sprayed pepper spray at both officers and at a boy, who was an innocent bystander.

Police Inspector Joseph Agius told the court that it took a squadron of five police cars and more than an hour to bring Mr Zammit under control and arrest him.

Legal aid lawyer Cedric Mifsud said his client alleged that he had been beaten up by the officers and asked for a court appointed doctor to examine him. He added that his client was under psychiatric care.

Inspector Agius also asked for PC Chetcuti to be examined.

Dr Mifsud did not request bail and Magistrate Francesco Depasquale sent a recommendation to the prisons director for Mr Zammit to be kept at the Forensic Unit within Mount Carmel hospital to receive the necessary care.

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