Man jailed for 19 months for stealing a ladder, breaching bail
The accused admitted he stole the ladder to fund his drug problem
A 38-year-old man was handed a 19-month prison sentence on Wednesday after he admitted to stealing a ladder that was tied on top of a van.
The theft took place on October 30 between 3am and 6am.
Michael Spiteri, from Żabbar, was accused of stealing the ladder, breaching bail conditions imposed on him in a previous case, and recidivism.
He immediately admitted the charges in court and owned up to the fact that he had committed the theft to get money for drugs.
Magistrate Leonard Caruana said he was finding Spiteri guilty on his admission and considered that, given it was not the first time that the accused had a brush with the law, an effective jail term would be appropriate.
“In these circumstances, the court will see to it that that the sentence nonetheless skews towards the minimum, given that it is very clear this theft was motivated by the accused’s drug problem,” Caruana said.
He sentenced the accused to a 19-month effective prison sentence and ordered him to follow a drug rehabilitation program while in prison.
Spiteri was also ordered to pay €185 to the owner of the ladder.
The court ordered that €50 be confiscated from a personal guarantee he had been bound to in a separate case.