Woman charged with two armed robberies while out on bail

A woman, jailed for ten years in September 2022 for a brutal mugging, has been charged with two armed robberies which she allegedly committed while she was on bail, pending appeal.

Miriam Elabed, who is unemployed, was arraigned before Magistrate Marseanne Farrugia on Monday, charged with robbing a Marsa betting shop while armed with a knife and a hammer. Bystanders managed to overpower the robber and detain her until the police arrived.

Further investigations showed that Elabed had also carried out another armed robbery at a convenience shop in Marsaskala.

The woman was also charged with breaching bail conditions handed to her by the criminal court, pending her appeal to the 10-year prison sentence she had been handed for the 2022 robbery.

The brutal mugging in 2022 left an elderly woman’s arm fractured in three places.

Elabed pleaded not guilty to the charges. Bail was not requested.

Lawyer Maria Karlsson was appointed as legal aid counsel to Elabed.