A man who was jailed for 18 years on drug charges told a court today that one of the men who allegedly bribed the late Judge Ray Pace had asked him for money in exchange for a shorter prison term.

Darren Desira was giving evidence in the trial of Raymond Caruana and Sandro Psaila, who stand accused of the attempted bribery of Judge Pace.

Mr Desira said he knew Mr Caruana, through whom he also knew Mr Psaila .

He said Mr Psaila knew before him when his sentence would be delivered in his drugs trial. He told him that he knew a judge who would eventually become Chief Justice.  

Mr Psaila demanded money in exchange for a shorter jail sentence, possibly five years.

He also invited him to his restaurant in Bugibba to meet Judge Pace.

Mr Desira said he refused to go. By that time, he said, his lawyers were already involved in a process of plea bargaining. However, no agreement was ever reached with the prosecution.

Three weeks before the judgement was delivered,  Mr Caruana began sending messages with people, that Mr Desira was going to be jailed for 18 years.

Mr Desira said he suspected that Mr Caruana had himself sought the 18-year sentence to keep him in prison for as long as possible because he (Caruana) owed him money.

The prosecution had been seeking a 15-year jail term in the plea bargaining talks.

(The prison sentence was imposed by Judge Lawrence Quintano, who is not a suspect in the case)

The case continues.