A court has ruled it has no competence to decide whether a man is being detained illegally and said the matter should have been taken to a higher court.

But in his concluding observations, Magistrate Lawrence Quintano, presiding over the Magistrates' Court, remarked that the man's allegations of illegal arrest were baseless.

Alfred Azzopardi, who stands charged with rape, was granted bail after being remanded in custody two years ago. But since bail was set at €30,000 which is far beyond his means, the accused could not obtain his release.

He appealed the bail conditions and the sum was reduced to €15,000. Still, since he is a pensioner and lives on €350 a month he could not afford that either.

The man's lawyer, Jose Herrera, filed an application last Friday arguing that his client's detention had turned into an illegal arrest because he could not exercise his right to leave prison.

The magistrate yesterday dismissed the application, agreeing with the Attorney General's argument that the court had no competence to decide on the matter.

The magistrate said the matter should have been taken to the Constitutional Court rather than an appeal filed before him.

However, he also remarked that in his opinion, the courts had acted in accordance with the law by granting bail and, therefore, the man was not being held under arrest illegally.