Victor Refalo (right), the owner of Marsalforn’s Ekxa Kiosk, today was sentenced to two months imprisonment after being found guilty of threatening deputy mayor of Zebbug, Daniel Cordina (left). The Malta Independent had reported the incident and that Mr Cordina had filed a police report back on 23 February.

Cordina’s lawyer, Dr Chris Said, told the court that the plaintiff was ready to drop the case if Mr Refalo, a former Labour Party councillor in the same locality, guaranteed that he would no longer contact him again, but the defendant, who is a former member of the same local council, refused.

In comments to TMI in February, Mr Cordina said that he was followed to his doorstep “bumper-to-bumper” by Mr Refalo after which he was told “you’ll regret this” in a brief confrontation. The incident happened in light of reports by The Malta Independent on Sunday the previous Sunday that substantial extension works were being carried out next to Ekxa Kiosk, about which the locality’s administrative committee had been kept in the dark.

Mr Cordina had told this newsroom that this was an escalation of threatening behaviour which started off with “dirty looks” during any chance encounter the two might have had; even while the victim was dropping off his children at school.