Man shot in lotto hold-up

Armed robbers yesterday shot a man in the arm as they were being chased after staging a hold-up on a lotto booth in Ghajn Dwieli in Paola, the police said.

The two robbers, both hooded, entered the booth at about noon and demanded cash and other items. As they were making their escape in a white Toyota Starlet, the husband of the lotto receiver turned up and on the spur of the moment decided to give chase in his own car.

At one point he rammed the robbers car from behind.

The thieves opened fire and the man had to stop when he was hit in the arm with a bullet. A few minutes later, an armed man wearing a crash helmet walked into the lotto booth in Rinella Street, in Kalkara and stole money after holding up the lotto receiver.

The police said the two incidents appeared to be unconnected. In both, however, the robbers made use of vehicles they had stolen the day before.

It was also evident that they had timed their crimes carefully, lured by the prospect of landing a sackful of cash - it is well-known that many people leave it to the last day to buy tickets for the Super 5 lottery and particularly brisk betting was expected yesterday with the jackpot climbing to a record Lm400,000.

The amount stolen, however, was not significant - just over Lm1,000 in each of the hold-ups.

The Union Haddiema Maghqudin and the Lotto Receivers Union issued a statement saying they had instructed receivers to close immediately after the incidents as their safety and that of their employees could not be guaranteed.

The unions are today scheduled to hold a meeting with the chief executive of Maltco Lotteries and the Commissioner of Police to discuss how security can be beefed up to protect the lotto receivers.

The police had already stepped up their patrols, as they always do when the Super 5 jackpot prize soars. Policemen were assigned to guard several of the lotto booths that stayed open.

The police also mounted a network of patrols all over the island in search of the robbers.

"One cannot tell if the police patrols foiled other hold-ups. Unfortunately, we did not manage to foil these," a police spokesman said.