A maintenance worker raising his young daughter single-handedly, was remanded in custody on Friday for allegedly threatening ONE TV host Karl Stagno Navarra over an unsettled debt. 

The issue allegedly revolved around a car which 47-year old Jean Pierre Schembri from Żebbuġ, had sold to Stagno Navarra and for which he was still owed money. 

Matters apparently came to a head on Wednesday when Stagno Navarra reported at Qormi police station that he was allegedly being harassed by Schembri who was sending him threatening and insulting messages over the past months. 

The complainant also claimed that he had noticed Schembri in the vicinity of his home and workplace. 

The police summoned the suspect for questioning. 

But shortly afterwards, Stagno Navarra called again to report that Schembri had turned up at his home.

A violent episode ensued during which Schembri allegedly smashed a vase with a crash helmet he was carrying and also attacked his alleged debtor, causing slight injuries. 

The alleged aggressor subsequently obeyed police orders when summoned to the police station. He was taken into custody. 

On Friday, he was charged with harassment, causing his alleged victim fear of violence, insulting and threatening him, slightly injuring him, causing wilful damage to third-party property as well as misuse of electronic communications equipment. 

He pleaded not guilty. 

A request for bail was objected to mainly because the alleged victim was still to testify and there was thus a real risk of tampering with evidence. Moreover, the defendant had allegedly breached a conditional discharge handed down in 2022. 

Defence lawyer Lennox Vella countered that this trouble stemmed from an unsettled debt in respect of which the defendant had even filed a judicial letter, securing an executive title over the vehicle he had sold to Stagno Navarra. 

Apparently, the purchaser had long been taking him for a ride, telling the defendant to collect the money from different places. But the money was never handed over. 

Moreover, the lawyer claimed that Stagno Navarra had threatened “to have [the defendant’s] daughter placed in state care.” 

Schembri had sole care and custody over the minor and if his request for bail were to be turned down, he would face consequences that were far more serious than the offences he was being charged with, argued the lawyer. 

After hearing submissions, the court, presided over by magistrate Giannella Camilleri Busuttil, turned down the request after observing that the defendant had a previous conviction on his record for a similar offence. 

The court also upheld a request for a protection order, warning the defendant not to approach or communicate with Stagno Navarra in any way. 

The defence objected to a request by the prosecution earlier in the hearing for a ban on the alleged victim’s name w because it was legally unfounded. It was subsequently rejected by the court. 

The defendant voiced his concern over the fate of his minor child once his request for bail was turned down. 

Inspector Doriette Cuschieri prosecuted. Lawyer Lennox Vella was defence counsel.