Man charged over stolen mobile and 1.7g of cannabis

A 25-year-old Eritrean national has been remanded in custody after being arraigned in court on charges of theft and drug possession.

Awet Estifanos Weldetinsae was arrested at around 2:45 am on Sunday after a police patrol in Paceville spotted him acting suspiciously. Inspector Elton Taliana told magistrate Audrey Demicoli that when he spotted the police car approaching, Weldetinsae was seen to place something underneath a parked car.

The officers, deciding to go over and have a word with the Eritrean, found a stolen €400 Samsung mobile phone and 1.7 grams of cannabis underneath that same vehicle. Weldentinsae told police that the objects were not his.

He was charged with theft, receiving stolen goods and drug possession.

Lawyer Patrick Valentino entered a plea of not guilty on behalf of the accused.

No bail was requested at this stage as accused had no fixed address, but the defence reserved the right to request it at a later stage.