Jail term reduced by one year

A St Julian`s man who had been jailed for four years and fined Lm400 for drug trafficking and possession, yesterday had his jail term reduced by a year after an Appeal Court ruled the Magistrates` Court had not taken the man`s cooperation with police into consideration when handing down judgment.

Karl Heinrich Muscat, 33, was originally found guilty by the Magistrates` Court of cocaine trafficking and possession on and before September, 30, 1997.

Muscat appealed, claiming the Magistrates` Court`s judgement was too harsh because it had not taken certain factors into consideration.

After evaluating the circumstances of the case, Mr Justice Joseph Galea Debono ruled that although the jail term fell within the parameters prescribed by law, that fact that he had cooperated with police investigations should have been taken into consideration.

For this reason, Mr Justice Galea Debono reduced Muscat`s jail term by a year and ordered the destruction of the cocaine found in his possession.