A man was handed a suspended sentence after admitting to a string of thefts targeting a Mellieħa supermarket over the span of a fortnight.

Marius Stefan, 40, was charged with stealing from the same outlet three times, each time within the space of a week, the last theft being aggravated by value and time.

The Romanian national had originally been charged alongside another person who was subsequently tried separately.

Upon his arraignment on August 13, the accused, previously jailed for pickpocketing, had pleaded guilty to the thefts, but denied that he had returned to Malta without permission by immigration authorities after having been previously deported from the island.

The court, presided over by magistrate Rachel Montebello, confirmed that the accused had filed an appeal before the Immigration Appeals Board in August last year and that therefore the deportation order had not yet been decided upon.

As for the charge of recidivism, the prosecution had not exhibited the accused’s past convictions in support of this charge, the court said. 

When meting out punishment, the court observed that in spite of his early guilty plea, the accused had shown little cooperation during investigations and had targeted the same shop three times in a row.

As for the stolen items, these had been returned except for some totaling €85 in value.

Upon the man’s own admission, the court declared him guilty, condemned him to an 18-month jail term suspended for two years and ordered him to refund the €85 to the victim within six months.

Inspector Clayton Camilleri prosecuted.