Three Syrians who fled their war-torn homeland in search of a better future tried to enter Malta illegally as they could not afford to buy a ticket for the catamaran from Sicily, a court heard yesterday.
Ahmad Khalf, 27, Ryad Alhmada, 22, and Saltan Nagm, 20, received a suspended jail term after admitting entering Malta without a passport. The three men will be deported to Sicily.
The Syrians were discovered hiding in the back of a Toyota SUV last Thursday on a catamaran from Sicily during a inspection by Customs officials. A consignment of undeclared water bottles was also found.
It later emerged that the car, being driven by 21-year-old Rennie Fava from Żabbar, belonged to a Syrian national living in Malta, Malek Hasan, 22, from Cospicua.
Both men were yesterday charged before Magistrate Francesco Depasquale and admitted assisting the migrants to enter Malta illegally.
Mr Hasan was given a two-year jail term suspended for four years, slapped with a €3,000 fine and his vehicle was impounded.
Mr Fava, whose wife is related to Mr Hasan, was also charged with relapsing. He was sentenced to 18 months in jail suspended for four years and fined €6,000.
It would have been much cheaper if you had opted to come Malta legally
Principal migration officer Inspector Frankie Sammut, who led the prosecution, told the court that there were no signs of human trafficking in this case. He pointed out that no evidence had been found which could suggest that the Syrians had paid money for the illegal crossing.
“Their intention was simply to come to Malta to find a job, but they could not afford to buy the catamaran ticket,” he said.
The prosecution presented Mr Hasan’s mobile phone as evidence that he had called the Syrians to make the necessary arrangements last Wednesday, the day before the crossing.
The court heard how Mr Fava was asked to go to Sicily and leave the vehicle unlocked in Pozzallo, while having a short snack in a nearby restaurant. Meanwhile, the Syrians would hide in the back of the car under a consignment of mineral water worth some €250.
Magistrate Depasquale warned the Syrians that any further attempt to enter Malta illegally would immediately land them in jail.
“It would have been much cheaper if you had opted to come Malta legally,” he remarked. The Syrians were then taken away to be deported back to Italy, where they had been living for some time.
George Anton Buttigieg represented Mr Hasan and Mr Fava, while Simon Micallef Stafrace was the legal aid lawyer for the three men who hid in the vehicle.