A man who brutally assaulted an elderly jeweller during a failed robbery and left him to die has been sentenced to 32 years in prison, following the victim’s death from his injuries last month.

Mohamed Anas Boualam, whose violent assault left 67-year-old Joseph Carabott with catastrophic brain damage, changed his plea to guilty last month after initially denying the charges of grievous bodily harm and kidnap. The charges were upgraded to murder after Carabott succumbed to his injuries.

The attack took place in August 2023, when Carabott was found unconscious and bloodied inside his jewellery shop on Triq Dun Ġużepp Żammit in Żurrieq. He remained in a critical state for months before passing away.

Boualam’s co-accused, Zouhair Hadoumi, 28, has pleaded not guilty and will continue to face trial. A third accomplice, Donna Sciberras, previously admitted her role in the crime and was sentenced to 28 years in prison.

During her testimony, Sciberras turned on her accomplices, describing how Boualam beat Carabott with the handle of a large knife, while Hadoumi pinned him down.

Sciberras, who masterminded the heist after hearing about the jeweller’s lack of CCTV while in prison, said the plan was simply to rob the shop. But things escalated when Boualam insisted on bringing a 14cm knife “just in case something happens”.