Long-time convict Alfred Bugeja, known as Il-Porporina, yesterday begged a magistrate to authorise euthanasia for him, soon after he was jailed for a further seven years over a drug deal carried out from his prison cell.

“Mr Magistrate, can you order a euthanasia injection, because there’s no point in living any longer,” the 59-year-old Mr Bugeja, who has been in and out of prison for several decades, asked in a resigned voice as the magistrate was walking out of the courtroom.

Mr Bugeja was found guilty of conspiring to import two kilograms of cocaine, one kilogram of heroin and about 2,000 ecstasy pills from Holland in May 2002. He was behind bars at the time.

As he sat slumped in the dock with his arms crossed, Mr Bugeja – whose nickname has become a household name – heard Magistrate Francesco Depasquale refer to his “never-ending” criminal convictions and his utter lack of respect for the law.

“Had he not been in prison, the court is convinced that Mr Bugeja would have found ways of involving himself in criminal activities to the detriment of many youths,” the magistrate said.