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5 maltatoday | WEDNESDAY • 6 AUGUST 2025 NEWS JOHN Ifeanyi, a 46-year-old Nigerian national, was handed a suspended sen- tence after he admitted to defrauding a Gozitan businessman of €7,300. The case began last June after the victim, Clint Grech, filed a police re- port following realisation that he had been tricked by Ifeanyi. The convicted man told the victim that he would purchase gold for him from Guinea. Ifeanyi had been previ- ously working for Grech and laid tiles for him. Grech told the police that Ifeanyi initally offered to purchase for him 10 kgs of gold from Guinea for the amount of €16,000. The victim agreed to purchase on- ly three kgs for the price of €7,300: €5,900 for the gold itself and €1,400 for the airfare. After receiving the money, Ifeanyi began sending messages and videos to Grech, claiming that he was in Guin- ea. However, it was later revealed that this was untrue and the Nigerian did not travel to bring the gold to Grech. A Trenitalia train ticket and a fake gold authentication certificate uncov- ered that he was actually in Italy. Ifeanyi immediately admitted to the charges in court and offered to return the money to Grech. The court took into consideration his early guilty plea, cooperation with the police, clean criminal record, and his willingness to reimburse the victim. He was sentenced to two years in prison, suspended for four years, and was ordered to repay the €7,300 with- in six months. The court warned him about the consequences should he fail to pay or commit another offence during this period. The prosecution was led by Inspec- tor Keith Xerri. Magistrate Jean-Paul Grech presided. Man told his boss he would buy him gold in Guinea but went to Italy and kept €7,300 for himself Man admits to defrauding Gozitan businessman of €7,300 by telling him he would get him gold from Guinea MAYA GALEA mgalea@mediatoday.com.mt MAYA GALEA mgalea@mediatoday.com.mt PASCQUALINO Cefai, a well- known repeat offender, has had his bail revoked after verbally attacking Magistrate Joe Mifsud, his brother Mario Mifsud, and their elderly mother. The convict was brought be- fore a Gozo court on Friday, following a disruptive incident that occurred the previous day during a separate court hearing. The incident unfolded during proceedings relating to a traffic collision, where Cefai stood as the accused and lawyer Mario Mifsud, brother to Magistrate Joe Mifsud, represented the victim. During submissions, Cefai made serious allegations against the magistrate. He also accused Magistrate Joe Mifsud of smuggling a bot- tle of whiskey into Corradino Correctional Facility and con- suming it with him. Police of- ficers present in the courtroom attempted to de-escalate the situation but Cefai's behavior forced them to remove him from the courtroom. Shortly after, Cefai requested to return and apologised for his earlier conduct. However, he shortly resumed his verbal outburst, loudly repeating the claim that Magistrate Mifsud had brought alcohol into pris- on. Cefai then hurled personal insults at lawyer Mario Mifsud and called him a "cuckold". He further made a vile remark about their 86-year-old moth- er as he alleged that she "pros- titutes herself in Gżira". The following day, Cefai was formally charged and he plead- ed not guilty to insulting and threatening Magistrate Joe Mifsud, threatening and de- faming lawyer Mario Mifsud and their mother, disturbing public order, and violating bail conditions imposed in January 2023. Despite these charges, the court initially granted him bail. On Monday, the case returned before the Criminal Court after the Attorney General filed an appeal against the decision to grant Cefai bail. The prosecution argued that Cefai had already breached two other bail conditions and was highly likely to disregard any court-imposed restrictions. AG lawyer Daniel Vancell insisted the conditions set on Friday were inadequate, pointing out that Cefai had issued threats and insults against a magis- trate, a lawyer, and their elder- ly mother. Given his extensive criminal history, the prosecu- tion maintained that Cefai was unreliable and untrustworthy. Lawyer Lennox Vella, appear- ing for Magistrate Joe Mifsud, reinforced this argument. He cited a previous incident where Cefai had stabbed another man inside a courtroom. Vella de- scribed Cefai as someone who "does not know what a court order is". The lawyer highlight- ed the fact that even after being escorted out and allowed back into the courtroom, his disrup- tive behaviour did not cease but only got worse. In response, lawyer Simon Micallef Stafrace, appearing for Cefai, argued that the en- tire situation stemmed from a simple traffic collision case that spiraled out of control. He questioned why Magistrate Joe Mifsud became involved in the accusations and maintained that the incident should be viewed in its entirety. Micallef Stafrace also sug- gested that most of the wit- nesses were members of the judiciary, court staff, or police inspectors, people unlikely to be influenced by Cefai. In light of the submissions, Madam Justice Consuelo Scer- ri Herrera ruled in favor of the Attorney General and re- voked Cefai's bail. The court concluded that the Court of Magistrates had exercised poor judgment when it granted bail and failed to account for Ce- fai's extensive criminal history, which includes numerous con- victions, fines, suspended sen- tences, and prison terms. The court annulled the previ- ous decision and ordered Ce- fai's immediate rearrest. Cefai has a long criminal his- tory before the courts. He was convicted of a court- room stabbing in 2014 and landed seven years in prison. In 2016, he was jailed for a further 28 months after threatening the then-Magistrate Miriam Hayman and attacking two police officers two years prior. Just months later, he was hand- ed yet another three month effective prison sentence after being found guilty of violent assault. Pasqualino Cefai in custody again after insulting magistrate and his family