A woman has been acquitted of smuggling heroin to jail hidden in roasted chicken thighs after a court ruled that the prosecution has failed to prove that she had been the one to deliver the dish. 

Tania Calleja, 36, of Qormi, had been accused of smuggling the heroin into jail in an attempt to supply her nephew, Marco Pace, known as Il-Pinzell, on January 12, 2006.

Prison warder Paul Borg Bonaci testified that a woman had delivered food at prison. He did not know her name but said the woman claimed to be Mr Pace's aunt. 

He told Magistrate Natasha Galea Sciberras that the food items included a loaf of bread, jelly, a plastic container with four doughnuts and another plastic container with two breaded chicken thighs, sausages and potatoes. 

After the woman left, he inspected the food after obtaining permission from his superior. When he opened the chicken legs, he saw a parcel wrapped in cellophane, wedged between the bone and the joint. He informed his superiors and forensic tests had confirmed that the substance was heroin.

The court heard how Ms Calleja had denied placing the drugs inside the chicken but the prosecution did not provide proof on whether she had been cautioned before making the statement so this was ruled as inadmissible. 

Magistrate Galea Sciberras noted how the prosecution's main witness - the prison warder who found the drugs - had admitted he did not know the woman's name and at no point during his testimony was he asked to confirm whether it was her or whether he was recognising her in court. 

All other witnesses, the magistrate noted, had simply repeated whatever the prison warder had told them and ruled that this was all hearsay. 

In view of this, the magistrate cleared the woman of all the charges brought against her. 

Police Assistant Commissioner Norbert Ciappara prosecuted while lawyer Edward Gatt appeared for the woman.

Sign up to our free newsletters

Get the best updates straight to your inbox:
Please select at least one mailing list.

You can unsubscribe at any time by clicking the link in the footer of our emails. We use Mailchimp as our marketing platform. By subscribing, you acknowledge that your information will be transferred to Mailchimp for processing.