Couple denied bail after allegedly staging woman's kidnap to extort money from her parents

A couple from Qormi have been accused of trying to extort €3,000 from one of their parents by staging the woman’s kidnap. 

Darren Spiteri, 44, and Graziella Francalanza, 43, both pleaded not guilty to charges of attempted extortion, misuse of telecommunications equipment and carrying a knife in public without a police permit. Francalanza was further charged with driving offences while Spiteri alone was also accused of breaching bail conditions.

Police inspector Roderick Attard told Magistrate Gabriella Vella that the woman’s mother had gone to the St. Julians Police Station to report that she had received a phone call from her daughter, who claimed to have been kidnapped for a €3,000 ransom. At one point during the phone call, the daughter’s partner - Spiteri - had also spoken to her. 

Francalanza’s parents told the “kidnapper” that they didn’t have access to €3,000 but convinced him to accept €80 instead. Police went to the designated place in Blanche Huber Street, Sliema, where they found the couple’s daughter unbound and in no danger. Further investigations suggested that the defendants had intended to extort the money to buy drugs.

Not guilty pleas were entered on behalf of both defendants by their lawyers, Marion Camilleri and Franco Debono. Bail was also requested.

Inspector Attard objected to bail, arguing that the principal witnesses were one of the defendants’ parents, which posed a “serious and manifest risk” to the evidence.

He added that the pair’s drug addiction meant that there was a higher risk of them committing further crimes.

Camilleri counter-argued that there was “absolutely no truth” to the statement that drug addicts were more likely to commit crimes, pointing out that Francalanza’s previous convictions were very old and questioning why the police had not taken down a declaration or statement -from the defendants if there was such a risk to the witnesses.

“The prosecution should not be the cause of the exception to the rule of liberty,” argued the lawyer.

“I have known Graziella since we were children. She is an ex-police officer and it is a shame to see her deprived of her liberty for reasons attributable to the prosecution.” Francalanza had two children, one aged 9 and another, 20, added the lawyer.

The court, after hearing the submissions on bail, rejected the request for the defendants’ release, due to the fact that the alleged victims are the elderly parents of one of them and were known to the other. “At this stage the risk of tampering with evidence is real and so the request is premature.”

The court made a recommendation that the prison director should provide them with assistance to overcome their drug dependence