A Libyan man who was caught stealing from a suite at the Hilton Malta in St Julian's just four days after he was given a suspended sentence for the theft of a handbag was today jailed for 26 months. 

Magistrate Gabriella Vella heard how Walid Ben Muftah, 23, was seen escaping through the room's balcony early in the morning on December 2, 2013 with two other men.

The guests, who were asleep in the bedroom heard noises from the living area and when they looked they saw them escaping through the balcony. 

They informed the hotel security that one of the three men was wearing a red jacket and a yellow baseball cap. The hotel security officers found the accused sitting outside a pastizzeria close by. 

He was arrested and the police found him in possession of two pairs of designer sunglasses that had been stolen from the hotel room. 

The court noted that although the evidence the police had was circumstantial, it was enough to convince the court that one of the three who committed the theft was the accused. 

The magistrate therefore jailed him for 20 months and added an extra six months which had been handed down just a few days before the theft. 

Police Inspector Trevor Micallef prosecuted.