A man who last month admitted sending anonymous hate mail to several public figures, registered a second admission on Monday after a fresh batch of letters to more persons came to light.

Joseph Mary Borg, 71 of Valletta, was back in court almost one month since he admitted to writing a stream of anonymous letters, threatening and insulting various politicians and public figures.

In the first case, Repubblika President Robert Aquilina, former MP Jason Azzopardi and his partner, as well as PN MPs Karol Aquilina, Beppe Fenech Adami and Ryan Callus were all targeted by the handwritten letters which landed in their home mailbox or were delivered to them in Parliament.

Professor of surgery and opinion writer Kevin Cassar was also targeted.

When testifying in court, Azzopardi had recounted how those letters, penned in distinctive handwriting and replete with vulgar terms, had caused him “years of torment.”

His partner, Flavia Borg Bonaci, had testified how the letters delivered at her home address had almost driven her to “paranoia.”

Repubblika president Aquilina described the letters as “photocopies” of the Labour Party narrative, indicating that the sender had been “brainwashed.”

After initially denying the charges, Borg had subsequently changed his plea and registered an admission which he confirmed in October after being granted sufficient time to reconsider.

Magistrate Astrid May Grima, then deferred the case to December for the drawing up of a pre-sentencing report.

However, with a few weeks to go for that sitting, police on Monday pressed fresh charges against Borg.

The court was told that a number of other public figures stepped forward to report that they too had received similar letters.

They included former Opposition Leader Simon Busuttil and his partner Kristina Chetcuti, Repubblika vice-president Alessandra Dee Crespo and professor Vicki Ann Cremona, an activist within the NGO. 

Prosecuting Inspector Kevin Pulis presented the fresh batch when new charges were pressed against Borg on Monday.

Each of the texts, penned in ink in scrawling handwriting, was presented in court in a plastic folder, along with a statement released by the accused at the Valletta police station.

Before registering a plea, defence lawyer Henry Antoncich signalled to the elderly man in the dock to approach so that he might have a closer look at those papers.

Resting on a crutch, the elderly man looked at the letters, nodding confirmation for each in turn before making his way back to his seat, clutching a cap and a paper bag.

His lawyer then informed Magistrate Astrid May Grima, that his client was registering an admission.

The case was then put off to next month for the parties to make final submissions.

Lawyer Jason Azzopardi, who was representing Busuttil and Chetcuti, suggested that since the charges, the time frame and the accused were the same as those in the other proceedings, the pre-sentencing report could apply to both cases.

That suggestion appeared to find favour both with the prosecution as well as the court.

The case continues.

Inspector Ryan Farrugia also prosecuted.

Lawyer Joseph Calleja was also defence counsel