Court denies 21-year-old thief bail

A police inspector has remarked that Malta stands to lose its reputation for safety because of petty criminals, as he charged a Hungarian man with attempting to steal items from a car parked in Paceville.

Inspector Nikolai Sant arraigned 21-year-old Ans Ghodban of Birzebbugia before magistrate Josette Demicoli this afternoon, charging him with the attempted theft, aggravated by violence, of a wallet and iPad from the parked vehicle in St. George’s Bay last night.
He was also charged with driving a car without a licence or insurance.

Ghodban, who told the court that he had been born in Hungary to Libyan parents, pleaded not guilty, saying that he needed “to be at school at the moment.”

Lawyer Francina Abela made a request for bail.

Inspector Sant objected to the man’s release, explaining that the owner of the stolen car had come across the accused in the act of stealing from his car and had resisted him, before chasing him to his Birzebbugia home, which is where the police arrested him. The stolen items were found at the accused’s residence. “I don’t think he’s capable of living a normal life as he had told the police that he had to steal to send money to his mother in Libya,” the police inspector said.

“Malta is going to lose its reputation as one of the safest countries in the world because of people like him.”

The court turned down the bail request at this stage,  due to the nature of the crimes and the untrustworthiness of the accused. Ghodban was remanded in custody.