A man who allegedly held a betting outlet manager at gunpoint ran away with €1,300 and a tracking device handed over with the cash. 

The alleged armed robbery took place at a shop on Naxxar Road in San Ġwann at around 8:15pm on March 3. Mark Anthony Bonnici, a 41-year-old Attard resident, was later tracked down by police officers in Sliema.

A female shop manager, testifying in court at the start of compilation proceedings against the alleged thief, explained how it was approaching closing time when a hooded man whose face was partly covered by a protective mask, walked into the shop and demanded the cash.

The man had walked into the shop, armed with a gun, and told her to hand over the cash. At first, the woman thought that it was some sort of joke. 

But when the man, visibly agitated and fidgety, insisted, she handed over the money. 

In that brief interlude, the phone rang and the woman took the call. It was a routine call from the company offices to signal closing time.

The manager told the caller that she had been robbed by a man who had just run out of the shop, cash and all, taking with him a tracking device that had been handed over with the money.

The police were alerted and were soon on site. The suspected thief was later arrested in Sliema and some of the stolen cash was allegedly found at his home. 

He was subsequently arraigned, pleading not guilty to the aggravated theft and a number of other charges stemming from the incident. 

The victim of the holdup, who identified the alleged culprit in court, said that she had not recognised the man at the time of the robbery, although claiming that he was a regular customer at the shop. 

She was cross-examined on this point by the man’s lawyers, even on account of the fact that only the suspect’s eyes were visible at the time of the incident. 

After hearing the victim’s testimony as well as that by prosecuting Inspector Lydon Zammit, the court, presided over by magistrate Ian Farrugia, upheld a request for bail against a deposit of €5,000, a personal guarantee of €10,000, signing the bail book three times weekly and a curfew between 8pm and 6am.

The case continues. 

Lawyers Franco Debono and Marion Camilleri are defence counsel.