An illegal immigrant who escaped from Malta, made his way to France and was brought back to Malta by the French police, was today jailed for six months.

Atef Aboubaker 31, of Darfur, Sudan, admitted illegally leaving Malta in October.

Police Inspector Mario Haber asked the court for a prison sentence as a deterrent because, he said, such cases were increasing.

Defence counsel Mark Busuttil said this was a humane case.

The migrant told the court that he had been let out of the detention centre but could not live in Malta because he was sick, he had no job and no money. "I am no murderer," the migrant told the court.

The accused was then jailed for six months, which is the minimum term.

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.