Italian steals €7,300

An Italian man, Giuseppe Mermina, 52, admitted in court today to stealing some €7,000 from two restaurants and an office over the past weeks. He admitted to breaking into a Sliema architect's office and stealing various items including four cheques on November 1. He cashed three of the cheques, amounting to about €4,000. He also stole cash and alcohol from two restaurants in St Julians. Mr Mermina was condemned to a  two-year jail term suspended for four years and ordered to repay his victims within six months.