Judge reduces jail term

A Nigerian man who was originally imprisoned for two and a half years for stealing over €233 (Lm100) worth of jewellery had his jail term reduced to one year after a court ruled that the prosecution had failed to prove the value of the jewellery.

Ezechukwu Prince Okeke had been jailed for two years when the Magistrates' Court found him guilty of stealing jewellery - consisting of a gold necklace, a bracelet, a pendent and a watch - from Malcolm Mifsud's car on May 12, 2006.

He was also found guilty of breaching a previous court sentence and sentenced to another six months imprisonment, bringing the total jail term to two and a half years.

Mr Okeke appealed the first court's judgment on various grounds.

On evaluating the case, Mr Justice Joseph Galea Debono, sitting in the Court of Criminal Appeal, ruled that evidence showed that Mr Okeke got a lift with Mr Mifsud and stole the jewellery when Mr Mifsud got out of the car for a short while to run an errand. The judge, however, noted that the police had failed to prove the value of the items stolen. Even though the court deemed that it was likely that the jewellery in question exceeded Lm100 in value "it cannot be morally certain that this was the case", Mr Justice Galea Debono noted.

The judge reduced the two-year jail term to six months and confirmed the six-month jail term handed down for breaching a previous court judgment.