A 37-year old Tripoli-born man has been remanded to Mount Carmel Hospital under strict orders of ‘extra precautions’.
The man on Sunday night assaulted a local singer in Paceville, holding a knife against her throat before making off with her handbag.
He reportedly escaped from the hospital, in spite of orders for ‘constant medication and constant watch’.
Munir Mohamed Ali Gammudi was charged with the aggravated theft of the handbag, being in possession of a knife and being a relapser.
The victim had told investigators how she and a friend had been waiting for other friends outside a nightclub when the assault took place. Two men approached them, one of them swiftly pulling out a jack knife and pressing it against the singer’s throat before managing to make off with her handbag.
The alleged aggressor pleaded not guilty and requested bail which, however, brought strong objections by the prosecution.
Besides the fact that the offence was aggravated by violence and the offender had no fixed address, the prosecution also argued that the two victims of the aggression were still to testify.
Moreover, this man had just stepped out of prison in December after serving a jail sentence.
In view of such considerations the court, presided over by Magistrate Anthony Vella, turned down the request for bail recommending that, on the basis of the medical certificate presented, the hospital authorities were to take all necessary measures to avoid repetition of past incidents.
Inspector Nikolai Sant prosecuted. Lawyer Noel Bartolo was defence counsel.