VALLETTA (MALTA) (ITALPRESS/MNA) – The Court of Appeal has confirmed the five-year prison sentence imposed on a Sicilian man over a violent robbery in Rabat in 2015 that left a shop owner seriously injured.
The man, from Catania, had been charged with acting together with another Sicilian man to steal cash through violence, causing grievous injuries to the victim and holding him against his will.
His accomplice admitted his role in the crime a year and a half later and was sentenced to six years and eight months in prison, while the appellant denied the charges.
Evidence presented during the original trial showed that the two men attacked the shop owner after he asked what type of shoes they were seeking. The victim suffered stab wounds, broken fingers and other injuries while trying to defend himself.
Police identified the suspects through CCTV footage and later found them together in an apartment in St Paul’s Bay, where a jacket linked to one of the attackers was recovered.
The Court of Magistrates convicted the appellant on all charges except those relating to carrying a weapon and wearing a mask.
He was sentenced to five years in prison, fined €3,830 and banned from holding a driving licence for one year. He was also ordered to pay the victim €2,500 and contribute to experts’ costs.
On appeal, he challenged the proceedings and the evidence against him, including testimony from his accomplice.
However, the Court of Appeal rejected all arguments, ruling that the evidence supported the conviction and that the punishment imposed was appropriate.
The appeal was dismissed in full and the original sentence was upheld.
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(ITALPRESS).
