A court today chastised a petrol station and lotto both after they sought legal recourse when it transpired that the cheques they cashed for a particular person had in fact been stolen. The courts remarked that only a bank is authorised to cash a cheque, and that they sought legal assistance only after being "bitten" by their actions.
Magistrate Joe Mifsud, presiding over the case, heard how the accused had stolen a cheque book and cashed two cheques at a petrol station and a lotto booth, and that she had done so because she was in dire need of money in order to send her daughter to England for medical treatment.
One cheque amounted to €2,945 while the other was worth €950.
The accused, who cannot be named under court order, pleaded guilty to all the charges brought against her, which mainly relate to fraud and profiting to the detriment of others through fraudulent means.
Magistrate Mifsud noted that since the mother desperately needed the money to send her daughter overseas, as proven by a medical certificate presented in court, she should have made a request to the Malta Community Chest Fund (MCCF) and/or Puttinu Cares. The MCCF is a charitable, run by the office of the President of Malta, who primarily assist with releasing funds to those vulnerable people who require expensive medical treatment.
Magistrate Mifsud also urged the accused to find a job rather than rely on Malta's social services to sustain her family.
In view of the guilty plea, and after making all due considerations, the courts ordered the accused to payback the two individuals whom the cheques were stolen from. She must repay the first person a total of €2,945 in €150 monthly instalments. Once all is paid off, the second person may start to be repaid a total of €950.
from The Malta Independent http://ift.tt/2mJNQLF
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