A man with several previous brushes with the law has been jailed for 18 months after pleading guilty to making off with cash from two Valletta restaurants.

Hamdi Habib Mohammed Shedi, a 32-year old Tunisian national with a registered address at Floriana, was marched to court under arrest on Friday morning and charged with having stolen €120 in cash from a restaurant on an evening in September.

Although he got away on that occasion, the police managed to get hold of Mr Shedi after he turned up as the prime suspect behind another aggravated theft from another restaurant in the capital on Thursday evening.

Prosecuting Inspector Daryl Borg told the court that in Thursday’s theft, the suspect had made off with a handbag, containing some €20 in cash and a number of bank cards.

Investigators zoomed in on the alleged culprit after analysing CCTV footage from the scenes of the crime.

Besides being charged with the two aggravated thefts, the man was also charged with relapsing.

Upon the accused’s own admission, the court, presided over by Magistrate Ian Farrugia, condemned him to an 18-month effective jail term.

Lawyer Mark Mifsud Cutajar was legal aid counsel.

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