Monaco Courts Balance Clemency and Prison, Faced With Bar Fights, Alcohol and Greed

A Bar Fight and a Cock and Bull Story

A very strange case indeed where the victim was claiming no damages at all, even after being hospitalized in a fight. Nevertheless, Monaco courts take cases involving violence particularly seriously. But neither the judge nor the lawyers could get to the bottom of why a British resident of Monaco broke the nose of his Italian friend in a bar fight. Both stuck with the likely “cock and bull” story that a boisterous exchange about football with a third man, who was also a buddy, led the assailant to “dead leg” his Italian mate. The Italian then supposedly put up his fists in self-defence which provoked a knock-out punch to his nose.

No-one was buying this strange tale from the two facing the bench. However, they obviously remained good friends and were unwilling to share with the court the real reason for the fight. What to do – prison or a hefty fine? The court chose a hefty fine of 3000 euros.

Pensioner’s Bank Account: Too Tempting For His Carer

A poor vulnerable pensioner under care was defrauded of over 15.000 euros by his carer. This was the claim before the Monaco court. His daughter discovered unusual withdrawals from his bank account. The carer had use of his debit card. The same pattern continued over a period of five months and there were diverted checks for thousands of euros, too. She alerted the police. The police interviewed the carer who claimed that she was owed considerable amounts for extra hours worked on the black. The carer claimed all was accounted for in a notebook and that it had all been agreed to with the pensioner.

The police were unconvinced, there being no notebook to be found to back up her tale – thus a court hearing. The carer scarpered and did not turn up in court. Neither did the pensioner offer himself as a witness as he was too frail and depressed. His daughter made her case alone before the judge. The story put forward by the defense, about being owed for extra hours worked, made no sense anyway, as the compensation would have amounted to no more than 1000 euros per month for five months. But more than 15.000 euros had been diverted to the perpetrator’s account. An arrest warrant was issued for the arrest of the carer with a potential one year’s jail sentence to be reviewed on further interrogation.

A Wine Grab To Feed An Extreme Addiction To Alcohol

Cirrhosis of the liver and three litres a day of “booze”, composed the life of this Romanian vagrant, holidaying on the Côte d’Azur from the UK. He was charged with breaking and entering into a Monaco restaurant at two in the morning – after being picked up by the police two hours later wandering the streets in Monaco with a bottle of wine to his lips. Definitely a case of extreme alcoholism. Even the evening’s cash and the tips in the restaurant were untouched. He had stolen only wine in order to satisfy his addiction. There was evidence of premeditation as a screw-driver had been used to force the lock of the door of the restaurant.

No papers, no money, no phone on him. His embassy and friends would have to transport him back to the UK which is where he claimed to work as an electrician. As for Monaco, the court exercised clemency and gave him a suspended jail sentence of 5 days – a disincentive to return to Monaco to resume his sad and criminal way of life.