A British man with an alcohol problem was yesterday placed on probation for three years and ordered to attend a rehabilitation programme for the same length of time after using a stolen credit card.
Jamie Day, 31, purchased items worth €246 in six hours on November 4 in St Julians. He told the police that a friend had given him the card which belonged to a woman, Irina Lyakhteynen.
Police Inspector Trevor Micallef told the court that Mr Day has a drink problem and had used the card to buy alcohol and everyday items such as groceries.
Mr Day, aided by a legal aid lawyer, pleaded guilty to using the card, forging the signature of the woman and committing a crime during the operative period of a probation order. Magistrate Anthony Vella handed down a three-year probation order including a three-year treatment order for his alcohol abuse.
He gave him a week to repay the victim.