Appeal court suspends jail sentence

An appeal court yesterday altered an 18-month jail term given to a Siggiewi man for attempted arson to the common danger by suspending its commencement for three years and putting him on probation.

The Magistrates` Court had jailed Dominic Cutajar, 37, for 18 months after finding him guilty of attempting to commit arson to the common danger and damaging Fransina Camilleri`s property in Qormi on January 2, 2000 at about 2 p.m.

Mr Justice Vincent De Gaetano heard how Cutajar, who worked as a lavatory attendant in Qormi, had found some cardboard boxes and set them alight outside Camilleri`s house.

The fire was seen by a man who lived in the apartment above Camilleri`s, a certain Carmel Cumbo, who put it out and saw Cutajar return on the scene with more cardboard.

He asked him if he needed anything, Cutajar replied in the negative and left. But Cumbo reported him and Cutajar was questioned by the police.

Cutajar appealed claiming that the Magistrates` Court`s judgment was too harsh in view of the circumstances of the case. He also claimed that at the time of the commission of the crime he was in a state of "diminished responsibility" because he had a low glucose level and a low IQ.

Mr Justice De Gaetano noted that the Magistrates` Court had not taken Cutajar`s clean criminal record into consideration. It had also failed to consider that Camilleri did not want Cutajar to be prosecuted because she knew him to be a good man.

The Magistrates` Court had not given enough weight to Cutajar`s IQ level that verged onto "mental subnormality".

For these reasons the judge ruled that a suspended jail term was more just.