Smoked cannabis 'to soothe pain'

A man who claimed he needed to smoke joints to soothe his pain was imprisoned for a year after he was caught growing two cannabis plants in Ta' Qali.

Darren Debono, 36, who was born in Wales but lives in Mosta, was spotted carrying something from a field to his car in Ta' Vnezja, Ta' Qali two years ago.

He was stopped by the police, who found freshly cut cannabis leaves in a bucket inside the vehicle's boot.

A search of the field yielded two cannabis plants inside a hole covered with bamboo sticks.

He was also found in possession of nine resin pieces weighing 220 grams, which were found inside a room belonging to his father.

In his defence, Mr Debono said he smoked four or five joints a day to dull the pain of the injuries he had suffered in a motorcycle accident.

However, in handing down sentence, Magistrate Laurence Quintano pointed out that the young man had already been caught in possession of cannabis.

He imprisoned Mr Debono for one year and fined him €700, which can be paid in €50 monthly instalments. Should this not be paid, he would have to spend an extra day in custody for every unpaid €11.65.

Mr Debono was also made to pay a total of €1,308.20 in court expenses.

Superintendent Norbert Ciappara and Inspector Pierre Grech prosecuted.