Car thief lucky to be alive after bad road crash

A drug addict, who is lucky to be alive after crashing a stolen car into the back of a truck, yesterday expressed his wish to kick the habit.

Speaking with a croaky voice and slurring his words, Gary Camilleri, 40, of Safi, a former warden, pleaded guilty before Magistrate Jacqueline Padovani of stealing the car and blamed the start of his woes on his father’s death.

Police Inspector Joseph Agius said that after seeing the damage sustained to the driver’s side of the car, he was surprised Mr Camilleri had survived the crash. The vehicle had been sent hurtling about 200 metres down the road and a wheel was missing.

The officer said Mr Camilleri was caught on CCTV stealing the car from Pietà on Tuesday at 6 a.m. The crash occurred in Żurrieq later that morning and the accused was under the influence of drugs when it happened.

At this point, Mr Camilleri asked to speak. He said he had migrated to the UK when he was 22 but came back and had been in Malta for the past three years during which he never committed any crimes. He used to be a warden but after his father died he lost control of his life and left the job. Now, he said, he lived in a small room in a field.

The magistrate asked him whether he wanted to reform and he replied he wanted to return to the way he was before.

The court handed down a two-year jail term suspended for four years after taking in consideration his clean police record and the fact he had cooperated with the police. He was placed under a supervision order for two years and ordered to attend a residential drug rehabilitation programme.