Four suspected pickpockets have been remanded in custody this morning. In two separate arraignments, the four women from Bulgaria were charged with carrying out pickpocket thefts in Valletta.

Inspectors Priscilla Caruana Lee and Alfredo Mangion arraigned Genoveva Stoilova and Iliana Ilieva, both heavily pregnant, before magistrate Josette Demicoli today. The two were accused of stealing a woman’s wallet.

Lawyer Etienne Calleja contested the validity of the arrest and pleaded not guilty on the women’s behalf. The women were already in Corradino Prison for similar crimes and had been subsequently identified from CCTV footage of another pickpocketing incident from June, explained inspector Caruana Lee.

Bail was not requested as the women were already in prison.

In a separate arraignment Inspectors Jeffrey Scicluna and Priscilla Caruana Lee charged Mariyana Borisova and Rusanka Dimitrova Staneva, also from Bulgaria, with stealing a wallet in April and using the credit cards it held on at least 8 occasions.  The pair also pleaded not guilty. No bail was given. 

Lawyer Shazoo Ghaznavi was defence counsel to Borisova and Staneva.