Court upholds 40-month jail term for man linked to violent necklace snatch and Paola store robbery

The Court of Criminal Appeal has upheld a 40-month prison sentence against 59-year-old Simon Camilleri, after confirming his involvement in a violent necklace theft against an elderly couple in Sliema and his complicity in an armed robbery at a convenience store in Paola.

The judgment, delivered by Judge Edwina Grima, concerned an appeal in which Camilleri contested his conviction on charges of aggravated theft and complicity in theft with violence, as well as breach of bail and recidivism.

Camilleri had been charged over two separate incidents. The first involved an assault in Triq Nicolo Isouard, Sliema, in May 2019, where 87-year-old Antonietta Wirth was robbed of her necklace while her 91-year-old husband Edgardo was pushed to the ground and injured during his attempt to intervene.

The court noted that although Mrs Wirth was unable to identify the aggressor in the courtroom years later, her original identification, alongside that of a bystander who witnessed the aftermath, was clear and consistent.

Crucially, police seized a distinctive red Nike slipper matching that seen in CCTV footage of the aggressor, linking Camilleri directly to the scene.

The second incident occurred a month earlier, in April 2019, when two masked assailants robbed The Convenience Shop in Paola while threatening a cashier with a knife. CCTV captured a blue Fiat Punto, later confirmed to have been driven by Camilleri, transporting the perpetrators and circling the area before and after the robbery. Camilleri claimed he was merely giving them a lift and was unaware of their intentions, but the Court held that his conduct at the petrol pump and his circling of the area made this explanation “highly improbable.” His actions were judged to be that of a lookout, assisting the robbers’ escape.

Camilleri was acquitted at first instance of causing grievous injury and of unlawfully detaining a cashier, but convicted of the remaining charges. He was sentenced to 40 months in prison, ordered to pay €938.39 in court expenses, and had the Fiat Punto forfeited. A €7,000 bail guarantee was also confiscated.

In dismissing the appeal, the court highlighted Camilleri’s long criminal record, his “criminogenic lifestyle” and repeated failures to seize opportunities for rehabilitation. It noted that the offences involved violence against vulnerable individuals and were committed while he was already on bail.

The sentence, Judge Grima said, was neither excessive nor improper in principle, and would stand in full.