Pair deny stealing elderly woman's handbag and €10,000 hearing aid

A motorcycle courier and a security guard have denied stealing an elderly woman’s handbag, containing credit cards and her €10,000 hearing aid.

Indian nationals Depty Naval 38 and Davinder Singh, 32, both of whom are currently being held in preventive custody at Corradino Correctional Facility over a separate theft, appeared in the dock before Magistrate Donatella Frendo Dimech on Wednesday morning.

Inspectors Lydon Zammit and Stephen Gulia charged the men with having robbed a 72-year-old woman in St. Paul’s Bay on January 2, between midnight and 1:00am. They were also charged with defrauding her and making fraudulent gains.

Naval alone was also charged with breaching bail conditions that he had been given by the Criminal Court in December 2020, in connection with a separate case where he is charged with drug possession and conspiracy to traffic 9kg of cannabis.

Inspector Gulia told the court how, on 2 January, at 12:15am, the police had received a report that an elderly woman had been robbed in St. Paul’s Bay. The police were told that the stolen handbag had the woman’s credit cards and a hearing aid worth between €9,000 and €10,000 inside it.

The stolen credit cards were subsequently used in a shop at St. Julians, so investigators analysed CCTV footage from the shop which showed the accused men using the stolen credit cards to purchase goods.

Naval told the court that he works as a delivery scooter driver with a popular local courier company. The men pleaded not guilty to the charges.

Inspector Zammit explained that the men had previously been arrested over another theft case and had been remanded in custody. Before their arrest, the men were homeless and resided in an abandoned hotel in Gzira.

Bail was not requested.

Lawyer Mario Mifsud represented Naval. Lawyer Daniel Attard appeared for Singh.