Bus driver jailed for six months

A bus driver, whose criminal record was defined by a magistrate as a "book", was yesterday jailed for six months for threatening the former chairman of the Public Transport Authority and throwing a flowerpot at a police inspector.

Joseph Zahra, 49, of Hal-Far, was found guilty of threatening the former authority's chairman Victor Spiteri and hurling a flowerpot at Police Inspector Maria Stella Cutajar on July 20, 2000.

He was also found guilty of threatening and assaulting a public officer on duty and breaching the peace.

Magistrate Consuelo Scerri Herrera heard Spiteri explain that Zahra had phoned him and threatened to hurt him. He was scared and reported the incident to the Police Commissioner.

Inspector Cutajar and another four police officers called at Zahra's house to investigate. He hurled insults at them, told them they had no right to go to his house and even threw a flowerpot in the inspector's direction.

On handing down judgment, Magistrate Scerri Herrera noted that Zahra's criminal record was more of a book. It contained 93 convictions accumulated since 1963.

The magistrate added that he had been given all sorts of punishments ranging from fines to jail terms yet he kept appearing before the Magistrates' Court.

For this reason she believed that a jail term was appropriate.

Police Inspector Cutajar prosecuted.