A 22-year-old woman was fined €1,000 after posting a video on social media jokingly suggesting burning down a circus at Splash and Fun following her outrage over the use of a live duck in a performance at the venue.

The court ruled that her comments could incite fear among circus employees and patrons.

The Court heard that in December of 2022, social media influencer Sarah Micallef Angelica Grech had attended an exhibition at Splash and Fun, during which one of the performers used a live duck. At that moment, Grech began shouting for them to stop and reported the incident to the Police and the Department for Animal Welfare.

A few days later, she posted a video on Instagram in which she was seen talking to a dog and saying the words, "Should we go burn the circus? For legal purposes that's a joke... maybe."

Patrick Vella, Splash and Fun director, reported the video to the Police. He alleged that the circus performers saw the video that Grech had uploaded and became frightened, with some wanting to leave.

Regarding the duck incident, he testified that he did not know exactly what happened to the duck because he was not present and emphasised that the performer did not have permission to use the duck.

He said that this performer was fired, and as the director, he paid a veterinarian to check that the duck was unharmed before it was returned to the farmer from whom it was brought. He added that, in connection with this incident, he paid a fine of around €2,000.

Grech's defense argued that her video was satirical as it was seen that she was talking to a dog whilst filming and that the threat was not credible.

However, the Court did not agree with this argument, stating that in the context of Grech's disappointment with the duck incident, she appeared to leave it to her followers to interpret whether her words were a threat or not.

Magistrate Yana Micallef Stafrace, delivering her judgement, stated: "Certainly, in the opinion of this Court, the words 'should we go burn the circus?' are not a joke and create legitimate fear among people working in the circus, others working at the victim's establishment, and its patrons."

In its decision to fine Grech, the Court considered her age and her clean criminal record. In addition to the fine, she was also bound by a €2,000 guarantee for ten months to refrain from harassing or insulting Patrick Vella.