Thief admits to stealing drunk girl's handbag

An opportunistic thief who was caught on CCTV pilfering a drunk girl’s handbag has admitted to charges of theft.

Police Inspector Nikolai Sant arraigned Georgian national Lasha Menagarishvili before magistrate Consuelo Scerri Herrera this morning on charges of theft aggravated by value and time, and of knowingly handling stolen goods.

The man was arrested after being identified from CCTV footage which clearly shows 38 year-old Menagarishvili approaching a girl as she sat alone, near a low wall in Paceville on Friday, her head in her hands. In less than a second, the man is seen to  snatch her handbag which had been perched on the wall and stuff it into his coat.

The handbag contained the woman’s mobile phone, wallet, bank cards, driver licence and cash.

Menagarishvili, who said he worked in farming, pleaded guilty to the theft charge. The stolen property charge was withdrawn during the sitting as it was an alternative to the theft charge.

In view of his guilty plea, the court handed the Georgian a one year prison sentence, suspended for two years.

Lawyer Noel Cutajar was defence counsel.