A man is being held behind bars after being accused of assaulting his father in an argument over money.  

The 33-year old Zejtun man was taken to court under arrest and accused of  having attacked and threatened his father, caused damage to his parents’ property, breached the peace, breached bail conditions and breached the conditions of a suspended sentence.

Defence lawyer Martin Fenech was critical of a “high risk” assessment of the case made by support agency, Appoġġ, pointing out such assessments invariably classified domestic violence cases as “high risk” thus leading to arrests even in minor cases.

“Suddenly everyone is high risk,” the lawyer remarked, adding that this practice was “rampant.”

Prosecuting Inspector Roderick Attard explained that the decision to arrest the man had been taken after the father had spoken to the police.

No injuries had been reported, said the inspector.

In submissions for bail, Dr Fenech argued that this had been a family argument. There was no fighting and nobody was injured at the end of the day, he said. 

The lawyer further requested the court to provide the accused with the necessary assistance to tackle drink-related problems, adding that the man would take up residence with another relative should he be released from custody.

Magistrate Caroline Farrugia Frendo, turned down the request for bail .after noting objections by the prosecution arguing that the man’s criminal record reflected his unruly character, further evidenced by earlier prosecution over similar charges.