A Swedish man yesterday insisted he knew nothing about a stolen iPad found in his hotel room on Monday evening.

Emil Sebastian Engstrom Launoila, 28, pleaded not guilty to stealing the €875 gadget and the bag it was in from a staff member at the Sun and Fun Hotel in St Julian’s, where he was staying with his girlfriend.

He was also charged with handling stolen property and relapsing on Monday between 4pm and 5pm.

Before the hearing formally started, Mr Launoila told Magistrate Charmaine Galea the case “had been handled in the worst way possible” by the police. After consulting with his legal aid lawyer, Alessandro Lia, he pleaded not guilty to the charges. Police Inspector Trevor Micallef asked the court to hear the testimony of Mr Launoila’s girlfriend.

Niina Joensuu said she had been with Mr Launoila for about a year and they had moved to Malta about nine months ago. They used to live in a Sliema apartment but, five days ago, they moved into the hotel. On Monday, she met her boyfriend outside the hotel on her way back from work and they went out. She returned to the hotel later but he remained out.

At about 7.30pm, the police knocked at her door and told her they had been informed there was a bag containing stolen items in their room.

She said she allowed them in and they found the bag containing the iPad in the luggage which she shared with Mr Launoila. She said she had never noticed the bag before the police found it.

At one point, a court staff member pointed out that her voice could not be heard clearly and Mr Launoila shouted that she was clearly nervous and that the court ought to show her some respect.

The magistrate turned down a request for bail, saying there was a risk the accused might interfere with investigations. Besides, he did not have a permanent address and had told police he lost both his ID card and his passport.

Upon realising he had not been granted bail, Mr Launoila turned to the police officers and told them: “Good job” as his lawyer signalled to him to keep quiet.