A man who apologised to a pastizzeria attendant after holding her at knifepoint and demanding €20 in cash has admitted his wrongdoing in court.

Kevin Borg, a 41-year old Ghaxaq resident, currently jobless, was accused of carrying out the hold-up at around 3:15pm on Monday.

He wore a face mask and hoodie and was armed with a penknife when he turned up at the outlet on Triq Tumbarellu, Ghaxaq, demanding money from the 19-year old attendant.

As she handed over a €20 note, the alleged aggressor apologised and promised to return the money, the court was told.

He was subsequently tracked down and arrested at his hometown on Wednesday afternoon.

Upon his arraignment, he pleaded guilty to theft aggravated by violence, holding the victim against her will, unlicensed possession of a weapon as well as recidivism.

Prosecuting Inspector Lydon Zammit told the court that this was an “unfortunate case,” because the man had struggled with his drug addiction for years.

After finally managing to kick the habit, he had faced social problems which triggered his relapse.

The man’s lawyer, Ramon Bonnett Sladden, agreed and explained that the accused was being monitored by a social worker.

All he needed was to free himself of his drug addiction, the lawyer said.

In light of such submissions and after granting the man time to reconsider his guilty plea, Magistrate Astrid May Grima put off the case for judgment on Monday.

Inspectors Stephen Gulia and Janetta Grixti also prosecuted.