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maltatoday, WEDNESDAY, 6 AuguSt 2014 News 6 Alleged donation box thief remanded in custody Daniel Mizzi Columnist Daphne Caruana Galizia has filed for libel against Kullhadd editor and labour Party deputy leader toni Abela over an ar- ticle in the newspaper, and against Freeport CEo Aaron Farrugia over comments he made on Facebook and twitter. in her application, Caruana Gal- izia claimed the article '€2.5 miljun f 'kuntratti' (€2.5 million in con- tracts) published on the front page of last sunday's edition – in which it was said that the Pn government had awarded over €2.5 million in contracts to a company in which her husband is a shareholder – was "de- famatory and libellous". the labour organ alleged that Evolve limited – a company which includes Andrew Borg Cardona and Caruana Galizia's husband Peter as shareholders – was awarded €2.5 million in contracts by the former Gonzi administration. moreover, it was also claimed that a few days before the 2013 general elections, the company was awarded €800,000 in contracts, as well as an additional €1.7 million in contracts during the past two legislatures. the article also alleged that successive Pn governments awarded a total of 127 contracts to the company – 30 of which were by direct order. Caruana Galizia also took excep- tion to Freeport CEo Aaron Far- rugia's comments on twitter and Facebook. "€2.5 million in contracts to Daphne/Peter Caruana Galizia and Andrew Borg Cardona by the Pn government during these last years. What unites these people is not only their companies, but also their con- stant attacks coordinated against the labour Party," Farrugia said on Facebook. Daniel Mizzi stEPhEn Galli, 50, of sliema was yesterday remanded in custody af- ter pleading not guilty to stealing a donation box from Chemimart pharmacy in Valletta. the theft occurred on July 30 at around 4pm, when the man en- tered the pharmacy in Valletta and stole the unattended collection box. CCtV footage showed the man stealing it. Galli was also charged with steal- ing perfume and other cosmetics from the same outlet in november 2013, breaching bail conditions, committing the crime during the operative period of a suspended jail term, and breaching a probation or- der. he pleaded not guilty. in submissions on bail, prosecuting inspector Darryl Borg told the court that the accused was granted bail on 16 July after he pleaded not guilty to charges of theft. Consequently, he said, he he had not learned from his mistakes. the court remanded the man in custody, and ordered that he loses €2,000 in deposit money for breach- ing bail conditions. A 33-year-old sicilian man resid- ing in st Julian's who was arrested on monday over the trafficking of around 3 kgs of cannabis was yes- terday denied bail after pleading not guilty to trafficking and possession of cannabis. Rosario militello, 33, of Catania, was arrested following a police inves- tigation which started in December, which has seen seven other sicilians already arraigned over drug charges. militello also pleaded not guilty to aggravated possession of cannabis, and simple possession of cocaine. magistrate natasha Galea sciber- ras denied bail. inspector malcolm Bondin pros- ecuted, lawyer Giannella de marco was defence counsel. A 33-year-old libyan man resid- ing in st Julian's was yesterday granted bail af ter pleading not guilt y to being in possession of cannabis, disobeying police or- ders, and being in a drunken state. the court was told that yes- terday, police officials had ap- proached the libyan man in st Julian's at around 4am. upon apprehending the ac- cused, munir mohamed Ali Gam- mudi, police discovered the man was in possession of cannabis in amounts that denoted it was not for his personal use. Gammudi however managed to f lee and jumped into the sea to avoid the police, injuring him- self in doing so. W hen charged in court, Gammudi was seen in a wheelchair suffering from a bro- ken foot. in submissions on bail, Gammu- di argued that he jumped into the sea because he was afraid of the police. he pleaded not guilt y to being in possession of cannabis, of disobeying police orders, and of being in a drunken state. magistrate natasha Galea scib- erras upheld the defence's plea for bail, and granted Gammudi bail against a deposit of €60 0 and a personal guarantee of €5,0 0 0. law yer Christopher Chircop was legal aid, while inspector trevor micallef prosecuted. A 32-year-old man from Qormi was yesterday handed an 18-month term of imprisonment suspended for four years after pleading guilty to stealing two benches from triq il-hlas, Qormi. the court heard that the accused, noel Farrugia, stole the two bench- es valued at around €600 to settle an outstanding debt. the thefts occurred between 2 and 3 August when the accused dislodged the benches from the pavement, loaded them into his van, and drove off. CCtV footage showed him steal- ing the benches. Prosecuting inspector Kylie Borg told the court that the accused, who has a drug problem, then sold them as he already had a seller in mind. standing before magistrate nata- sha Galea sciberras, the accused ad- mitted to stealing the two benches, and to handling stolen property. in its decree, the court noted that the man cooperated with the police during their investigations, and that he had already paid €120 to Qormi local council. nevertheless, the court handed the man an 18-month imprisonment term suspended for four years, and ordered him to pay the council a total of €601.80. the court also placed the man under a supervision order for four years, and warned him that if he fails to pay the council in full, he would be sent to jail. lawyer Christopher Chircop was legal aid and lawyer stefan Zrinzo Azzopardi represented the local council in parte civile. 50-year-old man denied bail after pleading not guilty to stealing a donation box from Valletta, just two weeks after being granted bail on separate theft charges Man charged with disobeying police orders, drug possession, granted bail Qormi man admits to stealing and selling two benches to pay off debt Sicilian denied bail over cannabis trafficking Caruana Galizia sues labour newspaper Daphne Caruana Galizia at a PN mass meeting in 2013