Thief robs man after forcing him to withdraw cash from ATM

A thief forced a man to withdraw cash from an ATM and then robbed him, a court heard today. The thief, a drug addict was  jailed for 18 months after he admitted the crime. The court heard that Clayton Fava stopped 23-year-old Shaun Sammut in a street in Floriana and asked him for money to buy a coke. But, on seeing his credit card he demanded that he go to an ATM and give him cash. Three cash withdrawals amounting to €300 were made. Defence lawyer Mark Busuttil said his client was not a criminal but a drug addict who committed the crime while suffering bad withdrawal symptoms. Magistrate Audrey Demicoli jailed the man and sent a recommendation to the prisons director to allow him to follow a drug rehabilitation programme.