A 37-year-old man from Siggiewi was today sentenced to six months in jail suspended for two years for firing at his housemate leaving him with two pellets in his neck and hand.

Horace Fenech had fired the shots in December 2008 during an argument with Nicholas Catania during which he demanded that Mr Catania get out of the farmhouse they shared.

Magistrate Edwina Grima heard that the men were good friends and lived together but things turned sour when Mr Fenech stopped Mr Catania from bringing what he believed were unsavoury people back to the house.

On the day in question, Mr Catania said that Mr Fenech told him to stop being friends with a certain man named Marco and also accused Mr Catania of stealing a caged golden plover.

As the argument heated up, the accused grabbed a small axe and tried to scare Mr Catania out of the house with it. Mr Catania said he grabbed his personal items to leave the house but when he reached for a caged bird a gun shot went off.

Mr Fenech warned him seconds later that he was going to fire a second which he did followed by a third. After the last shot he felt a burning sensation in his neck and hand and realised that he had been hit with lead pellets.

In a police statement, Mr Fenech alleged that Mr Catania had carried out illegal hunting on his property and used bird callers which he was whole heartedly against.

Magistrate Grima found the accused guilty of causing slight injury after it resulted that the injuries he suffered were not serious as he had almost recovered fully from the wounds.

She found no evidence to suggest that he knew that the gun was stolen and acquitted him of handling stolen property.

Lawyer Roberto Montalto appeared for Mr Fenech.