A woman who admitted to the attempted murder of a jeweller in a botched Żurrieq heist on Wednesday recalled how her two accomplices beat him senseless after he resisted them.

Donna Sciberras told the court that Zouhair Hadouni pinned down jeweller Joseph Carabott while Mohamed Anas Boualam hit him repeatedly in the face with the handle of a large knife.

Hadouni then began kicking Carabott in his ribs and head, Sciberras said, describing the violence as a “scary sight”. 

“His face was battered... A swollen face. There was a lot of blood. Dentures out. Blood on the floor,” Sciberras testified.

The two continued to beat Carabott in the face and back even after they tied him up, she said.

Sciberras was testifying in the case against Hasouni and Boualam, who are both pleading not guilty to a raft of crimes including the attempted murder of Carabott  in their August 2023 robbery.

Carabott was found by his children, tied up and in a pool of blood inside his store following the robbery. His children testified last year that he was permanently brain damaged with his chances of recovery being “close to zero”. 

Sciberras, who was initially charged alongside Hasouni and Boulam, last month decided to switch her not-guilty plea and admit to criminal charges.

She was sentenced to 28 years in prison and on Wednesday took the witness stand to testify against the two defendants

Sciberras told the court she used to date Boualam and knew Hadouni through him.

The idea of robbing the Żurrieq jeweller was hers, she said, having first heard of the store when she was in prison. An inmate had told her that the store did not have CCTV cameras, she said.

Towards the end of June 2023, she left prison at the same time as that inmate, who cannot be named by court order.

The inmate then made contact with Sciberras and asked her to find some people to rob the jeweller.

Sciberras said she pitched the idea to Boualam in Valletta. Around a week later, she met up with Boualam and Hadouni - who Boualam called to be involved in this robbery-  at a cafe in Sliema to discuss the heist.

The plan was simple: get in, tie up the owner and steal the gold. They decided to rob the store the next day, Sciberras testified.

On the day of the robbery, the three met at a house in Żebbuġ where Boualam and Sciberras were staying. They planned on taking a knife with a 14cm knife and 22cm blade, a hammer and zip ties to tie up the jeweller with.

It was Boualam’s idea to take the knife “just in case something happens,” Sciberras said.

They ordered a Y-Plate cab to the jewellery store, then put on new clothes in the street.

The shop was closed but Carabott, the owner, allowed Sciberras in when she told him she wanted to buy some gold for her partner.

Carabott started to show her gold in showcases. She then stepped outside to call for Hadouni, who walked in with a Lidl shopping bag that had the hammer and knife inside it.

As he entered, Sciberras told Carabott “This is a robbery”.

“He froze,” Sciberras recalled.

Sciberras said Hadouni then grabbed Carabott, and in the “split of a second” both men were tussling on the floor.

At that point, Sciberras said she started smashing the showcases and taking the gold. She then rushed out and called for Boualam, who came inside and closed the shop shutter behind him.

At that point, the two men began to beat Carabott, Sciberras testified.

She said she was busy stealing gold until she heard some whining. When she turned, she saw how badly Carabott had been beaten.

The men tied Carabott up and then Boualam threatened him:  “Be quiet or I’ll kill you! I’ll slit your throat”  

Right before they left, Boualam pulled Carabott’s head up, placed a knife against his neck and asked: “Shall we kill him?”

Sciberras said she told him “Let’s go, we’ve stolen enough”.

She said she exited first, and someone else closed the shop shutters. Boulam then ordered a cab and the trio, with the stolen gold in a black bag, went back to their residence in Żebbuġ.

Magistrate Donatella Frendo Dimech presided over the case.

Inspector Lydon Zammit and Stephen Gulia, alongside Attorney General lawyer Anthony Vella, were prosecuted.

Defence lawyers George Anton Buttigieg and Brandon Kirk Muscat represented the accused.

Stephen Tonna Lowell and Ana Thomas appeared on behalf of the victim.