A young man has been refused bail after being accused of threatening his mother and causing her to fear violence.

The mother filed a police report against her 17-year-old son, a drug addict, a few days after Christmas after he crept up behind her brandishing a knife. 

The teenager, accompanied in court by his father, stood blank-faced, hands limp at his sides throughout a hearing during which he pleaded not guilty to causing his mother fear of violence, insulting and threatening her and misusing  electronic communications equipment.

Prosecuting Inspector Audrey Micallef explained how last Tuesday his mother had filed a police report about her son who had been making use of illicit substances for the past three years.

She had been warning him to take care of his health, pleading with him to kick the habit, and there were many times when she had stopped short of reporting him to the police.

But the situation came to a head after Christmas.

On that occasion, there had been no arguments between mother and son. So the woman got a terrible shock when she turned round and found the teen standing right behind her with a knife in his hand.

“You thought it would be the last day of your life, didn’t you,” he told her, evidently sensing her shock.

After that episode, the mother began to receive life-threatening messages from her son.

Unable to bear it any longer, she went to the police.

When summoned by the police, the teen replied, “if you want to talk to me, you come.”

Following that call from the police, the teen upped his dose of messages to his mother, peppering his messages with insulting and offensive language.

The teen pleaded not guilty and said that he had recently landed a job at a retail store.

A request for bail was objected to in view of the fear of tampering with evidence, especially since the alleged victim is still to testify and also because of the serious nature of the offences.

Although his criminal record was “not alarming” the situation on the home front had been ongoing for three years and there was fear that he might commit further wrongdoing if granted bail, argued the prosecutor.

Defence lawyer Martina Herrera, assisting the accused as legal aid, argued that the teen was still presumed innocent and he was trying to turn his life round after going through a rough patch.

“The drug problem has greatly improved since I started working,” piped in the teen, in a calm and soft voice.

He had also been to Caritas and lived with his father, added the defence.

“So how was his mother involved?” asked presiding Magistrate Noel Bartolo.

Parte civile lawyer Mario Buttigieg stepped in, explaining that the mother was so scared that she left the family home and moved to their summer residence.

Her son had only been to Caritas for a couple of days.

The parents wished to put their son back on track and were hoping for a treatment order in that respect, said Buttigieg.

The prosecutor pointed out that the accused had confessed that “the problem” still existed but he expressed “a great wish” to address it.

After hearing submissions the court turned down the request for bail and recommended that, in view of the fact that the accused was a minor, he be detained at YOURS, the young offenders unit.

The court also upheld the request for a treatment order, explaining its implications to the teen and warning him of the consequences if he were not to follow orders given by those persons who would be monitoring him.

The court also banned publication of all parties’ names to safeguard the interests of the minor.

Lawyer Helga Buttigieg Debono also appeared parte civile.