Owner of bulldogs stolen from quarantine section wins damages

A Small Claims Tribunal yesterday found the Director of Food and Veterinary Services and one of his watchmen responsible for the theft of two English bulldogs from the quarantine section at Luqa.

The judgment was delivered by tribunal chairman Ian Spiteri Bailey following a writ filed by Neil Anthony Fenech against the director, watchman David Azzopardi and against the Attorney General.

The tribunal heard that in July 2005, Mr Azzopardi had reported a theft from the government quarantine section, in Luqa, where small animals are kept. Mr Fenech was identified as being the owner of the stolen dogs, two bulldogs imported from Greece. The dogs were bought for Lm1,373.76 and the cargo handling charges amounted to Lm17.50.

The tribunal heard that the dogs had spent eight days out of the total quarantine period of 30 days in quarantine and that their owner had paid Lm2.40 for each day of quarantine. It also resulted that Mr Fenech used to visit his dogs twice a day while they were there.

The quarantine section fell under the responsibility of the Veterinary Department and there were seven employees, excluding the head of department and a vet. One watchman was present during the night, and on the night the dogs were stolen, Mr Azzopardi had been duty watchman. The tribunal heard that at the time of the incident the kennels were not locked, though they were locked nowadays, and the watchmen were ordered to check the kennels from time to time and to pay special attention to the back part of the quarantine section where there were problems with lighting.

When the theft occurred it resulted that the fencing surrounding the quarantine section had been cut.

In its ruling, the tribunal found that the Attorney General ought not to have been sued in this case. But the tribunal found that it clearly resulted from the evidence produced that the director had not taken the necessary precautions to ensure the security of the animals in quarantine.

It was only after this theft took place that security measures were installed in the quarantine section. Before this date it was common knowledge that the section was not well lit and that staff was not sufficiently trained.

When referring to the watchman, the tribunal found that although he was aware of the shortcomings within the quarantine section, he had not done anything about them. Furthermore, the evidence produced indicated that he had contributed to the theft by not carrying out his duties properly.

In conclusion, the tribunal found the director and the watchman jointly liable towards Mr Fenech and ordered them to pay him Lm1,429.66 in damages.