A woman who insulted and assaulted a stranger while drunk in St Paul’s Bay and then resisted arrest was handed a suspended sentence and fined on Tuesday after admitting to charges. 

The incident took place in Triq Efesu, St Paul’s Bay when Halyna Moruk, a 27-year-old Ukrainian national living in that locality, ended up in a physical argument with a man who ended up suffering grievous injuries. 

The two did not know each other, prosecuting Inspector Warren Galea explained as he exhibited CCTV footage of the incident during the woman’s arraignment in court. 

Moruk was charged with grievously injuring the alleged victim, being drunk in public and disturbing the repose of inhabitants with rowdy behaviour.

She was further charged with violently resisting three police officers alerted to the argument, refusing to give her personal details and disobeying their lawful orders. 

The now-sober accused registered an admission, which she confirmed after being warned by the court that the charges carried a possible jail term.

Her lawyer, Daniel Buttigieg, explained that the whole episode had started off as a verbal altercation, involving language that “could not be repeated in court.” 

That argument had escalated and got out of hand, said the lawyer, pointing out that his client had been drunk at the time. 

The woman had a clean criminal record and merited a suspended sentence, the lawyer argued. 

After hearing submissions the court, presided over by Magistrate Caroline Farrugia Frendo, declared the accused guilty upon her own admission and condemned her to a two-year jail term, suspended for four years. 

The court took note of the accused’s early guilty plea, her clean criminal record and the fact that she had cooperated with police.

The court also imposed a €4000 fine, payable in €120 monthly instalments within three years. 

It also prohibited her from approaching her victim, binding her under a personal guarantee against a penalty of €1000.