A delivery man admitted to attacking his 15-year-old girlfriend and destroying her mother’s furniture in an altercation at the woman's Mosta home.
John Junior Pace, 27, was accused of attacking, threatening and insulting the girl on April 19, and damaging a number of furniture items as well as her mobile phone in the Mosta apartment where he lived with her and her mother.
He was also charged with insulting and threatening two police officers and disobeying orders, swearing in public while drunk as well as recidivism.
Defence lawyer Charles Mercieca said that Pace would be admitting to the charges and requested a pre-sentencing report prior to a final judgement.
He also made a request for bail, saying that the accused would go back to living with his father in Gżira.
Prosecuting Inspector Audrey Demicoli said that in view of the fact that the accused had admitted to the charges, and therefore the victims' testimonies would not be required, the prosecution would not be objecting to a request for bail.
She requested a protection order in favour of the two victims as well as the two police officers that Pace had threatened.
Magistrate Abigail Critien accepted the request for a pre-sentencing report as well as the request for bail, imposing a deposit of €500 and a personal guarantee of €1,500.
He was banned from overseas travel and ordered to sign the bail book once a week in Sliema and observe a curfew between 8pm and 5.30am.
As Pace approached the bench to sign the documents, he informed the court that he did not have an ID card or a Passport that he could deposit with the court.
When the magistrate asked whether he had a driver’s license instead, Pace replied that he did not, prompting some concern in view of the fact that he had said that he worked as a delivery driver.
Mercieca stepped in to clarify that Pace handled the goods to be delivered on the job while someone else was responsible for driving the vehicle.
In 2014, Pace was fined for firing an air gun through the window of the Gzira health centre.
The following year, he received a three-year probation order for breaking into his elderly neighbour’s empty house and robbing her.