Fourteen migrants were jailed for eight months yesterday after escaping from the Safi detention centre early in the morning.
The men formed part of a group of 19 who escaped by removing a set of iron bars from a window in the detention centre and climbing out of a shaft on to a roof at around 1.45am. Five migrants were still on the run at the time of writing.
Senegalese migrants Amadou Bah, 29, Boyo Mousa, 24, Keba Fatabo, 18, Usmanu Sanu, 18, and 19-year-old Ansuman Bajo pleaded guilty to escaping from the centre and from public custody.
Prame Hadali, 27, Lamemw Sakhanokso 20, Azmane Sahu, 30, and Ibrahim Sisey, 19, from Mali, also admitted to the charges with Ghanians Amin Umar, 28, Ahmed Yushan, 19, and 20-year-old Awal Hashim.
John Abu, 30, of Sierra Leone and Saidui Ismail, 19, of Guinea Bissa, also pleaded guilty.
The men were also charged with causing up to €116 worth of damage, to the detriment of the government.
The group of immigrants were brought in for their arraignment in a police van driven down Republic Street (normally suspects are brought to the court from the back) and walked through the main entrance of court handcuffed in pairs.
Escorted by police officers, the men walked into the court room of Magistrate Neville Camilleri, filling up the benches. A few of them were barefoot or wearing flip-flops.
Lawyer Renzo Porsella Flores, appearing for the men as legal aid, explained to the interpreters that the men had to decide whether to file a guilty or not guilty plea.
One by one, each man stood up in court and gave their details – all filing a guilty plea. One particular migrant asked the interpreter about the punishment if he filed a guilty plea.
After hearing all 14 migrants, Magistrate Camilleri informed the men that their crimes could be punishable with a prison sentence.
Prosecuting inspector Kevin Pulis asked for an effective jail term, saying their crime was dangerous and could affect public safety. They were jailed for eight months.
Last Monday, 28 migrants who took part in a riot while trying to escape the Safi detention centre last week were jailed while one was acquitted, with the magistrate saying violent scenes such as that had no place in civil society.