Man charged after Swieqi family detain 3am burglar

A family from Swieqi had the fright of a lifetime last night when they awoke to find an armed burglar rooting around their house.

Police inspector Nikolai Sant arraigned 25-year-old Walid Ben Muftah from Libya before magistrate Ian Farrugia earlier today. Ben Muftah was charged with the theft, aggravated by value, violence and time, of three gold rings, a laptop, two cameras and a pair of earrings from the family's apartment. He was also charged with carrying two knives without police permission and relapsing.

Inspector Sant told the court that the family had told police how they had been alerted by strange noises at around 3:30am and had discovered Ben Muftah rifling through their belongings. They detained the man until police arrived on the scene.

Ben Muftah, who had been jailed in June 2015 for stealing items from a hotel suite and who had only been released from prison three months ago, had told police that he didn't remember how he had got there.

The accused, a tile layer and plasterer, who told the court that he resides in Birzebbugia, pleaded not guilty to the charges.

Lawyer Christopher Chircop, appearing as legal aid to the accused requested bail. Inspector Sant objected to this request, “on society's behalf,” also arguing that the man had no fixed address and resided at the Hal Far Open Centre.

“A family found this individual in their house after they heard a noise at night and investigated with a torch. This cannot be tolerated in society.”

The court denied bail, saying it deemed the accused untrustworthy on account of his criminal record.