A Paget man who viciously mugged a tourist had his conviction upheld at the Court of Appeal and will soon learn his sentence.

Paul Lemar Smith, 31, was found guilty this year of attacking American tourist Ronald Storms, 69, and robbing him of $700 at a telephone booth outside the Fairmont Hamilton Princess hotel last September. He was also convicted of attempting to steal cash from resident James Conaghan on the same evening.

Smith's lawyer Larry Mussenden argued at the Court of Appeal last month that Smith, of Ord Road, should not have been convicted because Acting Magistrate Justin Williams erred when it came to the law on identification. Mr. Mussenden claimed the lighting was poor in the case of Mr. Storms and in the theft from Mr. Conaghan.

Mr. Mussenden further claimed the verdicts were perverse and that Mr. Williams had been wrong to refer Smith to Supreme Court for sentencing.

Last week Chief Justice Austin Ward rejected all the grounds. Noting that Smith has four suspended sentences hanging over his head, he said Mr. Williams was correct to send Smith to Supreme Court for sentencing because his powers of sentencing were inadequate. Mr. Justice Ward wrote: “The committal was made after conviction and pursuant to section 25 of the Summary Jurisdiction Act 1930 where by reason of all the circumstances of the case - vicious unprovoked attacks in an area frequented by tourists - and of the antecedents of the appellant (Smith), of which he has many, the learned Acting Magistrate concluded that his powers of sentencing were inadequate.

“There were four suspended sentences hanging over his head. The learned Acting Magistrate was in duty bound to commit the appellant to the Supreme Court for sentence. There was no error in law in ordering the committal.”

Smith was remanded in custody and it is understood he will likely be sentenced at the next arraignment session next Monday.