An elderly man who called a police constable he was arguing with a “liar” has been fined €800 and given a conditional discharge.

Seventy-year old Rosario Cortis ended up facing criminal prosecution after having words with the police officer on the streets of Qormi one February morning.

He was subsequently charged with threatening the constable, refusing to obey legitimate police orders, disrupting the officer in the performance of his duties, putting up a resistance as well as breaching the public peace.

The court, presided over by magistrate Simone Grech, concluded that the prosecution had not sufficiently proved that “there had been some attack or resistance accompanied by the use of force, violence or aggression,” pointing out that insults or threats could not be deemed as such.

However, the court did find sufficient evidence to convict Mr Cortis upon the other charges, pointing out that the officer had been insulted in the course of his duties by being branded a ‘liar’ in public. The accused had intentionally threatened the officer, failed to obey police orders and acted rowdily in public, the court found. 

For this reason, the court declared the accused guilty, conditionally discharging him for one year and imposing a €800 fine.