Qormi man admits to injuring his grandmother in argument over drug money

A 32-year-old man from Qormi has admitted to having injured his grandmother in a bid to force her to give him money for drugs.

The man pleaded guilty to having used physical and moral violence to compel his grandmother to give him money so that he could buy drugs.

He also pleaded guilty to causing slight injury to the elderly woman, insulting and threatening her and reacting in excess of the limits of provocation. He also admitted to causing over €2,500 worth of damage to her property and recidivism.

The court was told that the accused, who was described as having an acute addiction to drugs, also had problems with anger management.

Prosecuting police inspector Sherona Buhagiar told Magistrate Gabriella Vella that the incident in question took place between 9pm on Sunday and 3am on Monday, but the court was also told that it was not the first incident of its kind.

Defence lawyer Noel Bianco argued that while it was true that his client was a frequent user of cannabis, he had recently cut down on his consumption.

Bianco argued that the man had difficulty managing his anger and that this problem needed to be addressed. The prosecution and the defence both submitted that the man needed professional help and that it would not be beneficial for him to be released on bail at this stage.

In view of the guilty plea, the court imposed a protection order to provide for the elderly woman’s safety and announced that it would be sentencing the accused on August 1. The accused will remain in custody until then.