Maximilian Ciantar, the man convicted of having run over twin 12-year-old girls while driving at Attard, was granted bail this morning and immediately put himself in fresh controversy when he threatened court reporters.
Ciantar, 22 of Marsa, earlier this month served 16 months of a two-year jail term for running over the twins, but was back in court last week, accused of driving in Hamrun in violation of a six month driving ban imposed by the court. He pleaded not guilty.
Following a hearing this morning, he was granted bail against a deposit of €1,000 and a personal guarantee of €9,000.
Journalists who were present in the courtroom said that before the sitting started, Mr Ciantar warned them to get out, or be kicked out.
After the hearing, while he was still in handcuffs, Ciantar turned, ran towards The Times reporter in the corridor outside the court hall and threw a kick, but was pinned against the wall by two policemen.
The journalists filed a report to the police.
Mr Ciantar had been jailed for two years on July 27 of this year but was released from prison only three months later on October 31 because he had already served 16 months while in preventative custody. Moreover, he walked out of jail eight months early due to good conduct despite having set fire to his cell last year.
The Magistrates’ Court had also banned him from driving for 10 years but that was reduced to six months on appeal after a judge noted that he had never been found guilty of driving dangerously before and so in that regard he was a first-time offender.
Mr Ciantar is denying driving a pink Toyota Vitz while on a driving ban, taking the vehicle without the permission of his father, who owns it, driving without insurance and a licence and relapsing.
POLICEMEN EXPLAIN HOW THEY ARRESTED CIANTAR
During this morning's sitting, Police Inspector Robert Vella said that on November 9 Mr Ciantar was stopped in Hamrun when driving a car owned by his father and normally used by his sister. Policemen asked Mr Ciantar for his driving licence and ID Card, but he had neither, and he was arrested.
Soon after his arrest, Ciantar asked him X'buzulliti dawn? When the inspector asked him what he meant, Ciantar replied that he was only doing 30kph and had been doing nothing wrong.
The inspector told him that, following the appeal judgement which confirmed his driving ban, he was not allowed to drive.
PC Norbert Micallef, who helped arrest Ciantar, said that also in the car was Ciantar's girlfriend.
He said policemen had been warned to be on the lookout since Ciantar had been seen driving for the previous two days. He denied that Ciantar had said he was taking his girlfriend to hospital.
A Transport Malta representative said that Ciantar never ever had a driving licence and he had, so far, had three disqualifications from driving - the first was between 2007 and 2009, the second between 2008 and 2009 and the third was six months between 2001 and 2012.
In pleas on bail, defence counsel Joseph Brincat said his client had now been under arrest for two weeks when anybody arrested for the same charges would have been summoned normally to court.
Replying Inspector Vella asked what guarantee Mr Ciantar could offer to respect the bail conditions. He invited the court to look up his record.
Magistrate Jacqueline Padovani then granted bail.