A 29-year-old Chinese kitchen assistant today was jailed for a year after being found guilty of threatening two men with a meat cleaver last October.

Xiao Guan was charged with threatening the men after he only received €752 for all working hours between April and October 8. He claimed his boss threatened and assaulted him.

The prosecution said that Xiao allegedly attacked his former colleagues on 18 October, before the kitchen implement was snatched from his hands by two Ghanaian men passing by the Marsa apartment.

Kevin Penghcheng Zhang, one of the alleged victims and son of the employer, said that Xiao was not good at his job, and had previously threatened staff at the Valletta restaurant when they pointed out that prawns he was cooking were overcooked.

the accused was told not to come back to work and was sent a contract termination letter. He was given 10 days to leave the apartment which his employer provided in Marsa. The accused refused to leave before his full wage was paid.

The two men, Mr Zhang and the accused, argued, and Mr Zhang claimed the accused became more aggressive, chasing him out of the bedroom. The accused allegedly cornered Mr Zhang and threatened him with the meat cleaver.

He testified that he was so scared that he ran upstairs and jumped out of a balcony, landing on the adjoining roof. He said that Xiao went downstairs and threatened the general manager of the restaurant.

Xiao denied chasing the men, and said that Mr Zhang threatened him with a frying pan. He later, however, admitted to the charges.

The accused was sentenced to one year in prison, and ordered to pay €116.47. He was also ordered to pay the costs of the case.