The police have arrested a Lithuanian national who is suspected of theft and jumped off the Gozo ferry while it was berthed at Mġarr harbour.

Sources said the police were called on to the ferry to investigate a report that a man was stealing from one of the shops on the MV Malita at around 8pm on Tuesday.

He swam to the marina and hid among the pontoons

The man denied that he had stolen anything and at one point ran off. A chase ensued and he jumped into the sea. He swam to the marina area at the harbour and hid among the pontoons.

A search led to the man’s eventually arrest and questioning. He is expected to be charged in court in the coming days.

As a result of the incident, the 8.15pm ferry left from Gozo at 8.55. Meanwhile, the ferry from Ċirkewwa spent the entire time waiting outside Mġarr because the man was swimming across the harbour as it was approaching.