Stephen Pirotta, 39, of Luqa was jailed for 18 years today after a jury yesterday found him guilty by a 7-2 margin of the attempted murder of David Azzopardi in a road rage case in 2005.

Azzopardi was stabbed in the chest as he sat in his car in Qormi after he protested that Pirotta had hit his car's door mirror while overtaking.

He then tried to drive to St Luke's Hospital but passed out in Hamrun and was taken to hospital in an ambulance where emergency surgery saved his life.

Mr Pirotta had immediately admitted to stabbing the victim.

Before the incident he remembered drinking around four beers and a bottle of wine. As they argued he saw Mr Azzopardi crouch down and his first thought was that he was going to grab a pistol. So he ran up to him and stabbed him before he could be attacked.

The trial was presided by Mr Justice Joseph Galea Debono.