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Police sergeant’s shirt worth a ‘mere fiver’, court hears
Birkirkara feast brawlers granted bail after being accused of assaulting police officer
19 August 2013, 12:00am
Chris Mangion
Chris Mangion
1 min read
Two relapsing youths charged with assaulting police officers were granted bail by a court after the defence attorney argued that the 'damage' to a police officer's shirt they had ripped, amounted to just €5.06.
The incident took place at 4:30pm after the celebrations for the feast of St Helen, in Birkirkara, when defendants Clayton Galea, 24, of Birkirkara and Raissa Grixti, 22 of Valletta, were allegedly surrounded by revellers looking for a fight.
Police sergeant Stephen Micallef noticed the argument brewing and intervened to diffuse the situation, but in the commotion the argument escalated. According to the sergeant, Grixti grabbed hold of his shirt and ripped it.
Misjudging the situation, Galea reacted to the officer causing him slight injuries.
Magistrate Edwina Grima granted bail to both the accused against a deposit of €500 and a personal guarantee of €5,000.
Inspector Josric Mifsud prosecuted and Lawyer Veronique Dalli appeared for the two youths.
Chris Mangion is MaltaToday’s photojournalist, joining the newspaper in 2013.
In 1995...
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You are missing the whole point and I don't think it is funny at all. The point is the disrespect towards our police officers who represent the law. Today a ripped shirt, tomorrow what? These two happen to be two "relapsing" youths charged with assaulting a police officer. The buck should stop right here.
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Perhaps next one shot the court will evaluate the cost of the hole made on his cloths.and hence the cloths are not so expensive the charges will be dropped.
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What was the crime, attacking a police officer or tearing a shirt?
