A pair of Bulgarian pickpockets, who yesterday robbed a woman in Sliema of some €60 in cash, were today given a two-month jail term each, after a police inspector said in court that the current spate of such thefts was harming the public's peace of mind.
Mariana Petrova and Nadezhda Ivanova, aged 23 and 36 respectively, stood miserably in the dock before Magistrate Francesco Depasquale, facing theft charges over yesterday's incident.
Inspector Mark Mercieca explained in court that the culprits had been spotted by an undercover police officer patrolling the pickpocketing hotspot, in the very act of drawing the cash out of the victim's handbag.
The partners in crime had allegedly visited Malta three times since June. “It is a business,” the inspector said. “These crimes are destroying Malta.”
“It is a business. These crimes are destroying Malta,” the inspector said.
Although the two women admitted to the theft, their lawyer Victor Bugeja, pointed out that the stolen cash had been retrieved. Moreover, this was his clients' first brush with the law, the defence continued.
"It is not just to make a show of these people in the hope of deterring others," he said. Are you going to send them to prison over €60?” recommending that the two ought to be sent back to Bulgaria instead.
"Are you going to send them to prison over €60?" he said, recommending that the two ought to be sent back to Bulgaria instead.
However, the prosecution insisted that the court ought to send out a message to deter future offenders. "The prosecution is insisting on imprisonment. The police in Sliema are facing a huge influx of this type of crime. Both women claimed they were visiting Malta for the first time, but, from my investigations, it transpired that these persons visited Malta three times since June.”
"I think we need to transmit the message that Malta is a safe country," concluded the inspector.
"The court can always deport them to Bulgaria, but imprisonment for such a petty offence is quite excessive," Dr Bugeja insisted.
The court commented that the gravity of the offence was exacerbated because of the fear that such persons may cause to elderly people, who had to be wary of every person around them when out in public, as it sentenced each of the accused to a two-month effective jail term.