Opportunist thief admits to stealing cash, trying to use stolen bank card

Following a police investigation, the man later gave up the cash, minus €10 he had spent on cigarettes

(File Photo)
(File Photo)

An opportunistic thief has admitted to stealing cash and trying to withdraw money from an ATM using a card from a wallet he had found in  the street. 

Lulzim Sharka, 37, from Albania, was arraigned before magistrate Caroline Farrugia Frendo by police inspector Priscilla Caruana Lee and charged with theft, attempted theft and attempted fraud.

The Court heard how the man had found a wallet and had unsuccessfully attempted to withdraw cash from an ATM using one of the bank cards it contained.

The man had then gone to the police station to return the wallet and card, hanging on to the €120 in cash which it contained. Following a police investigation, the man later gave up the cash – minus €10 which he had spent on cigarettes.

Sharka admitted to the charges.

Inspector Caruana Lee said that a message had to be sent, as “foreigners cannot continue to come here in the vague hope of finding a job and then ending up stealing when it proves too difficult.”

Lawyer Ishmael Psaila, legal aid to the accused, pointed out that the man had only stolen €10 and suggested that the punishment not be “excessive.”

The court handed the accused a 14-month prison sentence, suspended for two years.