Ex-Sliema mayor to face drug charges
Separate criminal proceedings
Former Sliema mayor Nikki Dimech will be back in court over a fresh case, this time facing charges related to drug possession, The Times has learnt.
Sources said the charges have been filed in court but when contacted yesterday Mr Dimech sounded surprised and said he had not yet received any notific-ation to appear in court on any drug-related case.
It is not clear which drug he is charged with possessing, but the court had been told Mr Dimech had a heroin addiction problem, a habit he claims to have kicked in February 2000.
During the compilation of evid-ence against Mr Dimech in relation to alleged bribery, Police Inspector Angelo Gafà, the prosecuting officer, told the court last November the former mayor had told him during questioning that he had a drug problem and needed between €4,500 and €5,000 a month to sustain it.
Mr Gafà had testified that when asked what drugs he took, Mr Dimech had failed to reply but held his nose and sniffed.
About a week later, Mr Dimech called a news conference on the steps of the office of the Prime Minister in Castille, Valletta, to say the police inspector was “dreaming”.
When, at the time, he was pressed on the matter, Mr Dimech said he would not ask the police to retract the allegation because he “did not want to get anyone into trouble”.
He insisted he had stopped taking drugs in February 2000 and never used the quantities alleged by the officer.
Mr Dimech was deposed over the bribery allegations. He was kicked out of the Nationalist Party after he told the police in a statement he had solicited a bribe. He has since insisted he was coerced into making the statement after suffering a panic attack and claimed a frame-up.
The bribery case is still pending and the defence is soon expected to present its evidence to counter the case by the prosecution.
Mr Dimech was back in the news again a few days ago when the 54-year-old former vice-chairman of the Kappara administrative committee, Peter Calleja, admitted to bribery charges involving Mr Dimech. Mr Calleja was given an 18-month jail term suspended for three years. There are also separ-ate criminal proceedings against two other PN councillors: Sliema councillor Patrick Pace and St Julians councillor Raymond Cachia, who have both been charged with bribery involving Mr Dimech.