A man caught breaking into cars to steal phones and other items wept silently in court on Friday as a magistrate condemned him to three years behind bars.

Marphil Gauci, 27, an unemployed Gżira resident, pleaded guilty to various thefts which took place across three months and which involved a total value exceeding €2329.

The first theft happened on August 8, when a mobile phone was reported stolen from a Skoda parked in Gżira. Just over a month later, other personal belongings were reported stolen from a Suzuki parked in Msida. 

Mr Gauci was further charged with damaging two other vehicles, a Suzuki and a BMW, in two separate theft attempts. The most recent attempt happened on Wednesday morning.

Prosecuting Inspector Jonathan Ransley exhibited various items in court, including some of the stolen property, a window breaker found in Mr Gauci’s possession and a still image taken from CCTV footage gathered during investigations. 

After consulting his legal aid counsel Martin Fenech, the accused pleaded guilty, confirming his plea even after being warned by the court that his admission carried a jail term amounting to years.

Upon that admission the court, presided over by magistrate Doreen Clarke, condemned the man to a three-year effective jail term.