Seven migrants who reside at the Hal Far detention centre have been condemned to a one year jail term suspended for two years for their involvement in the riot that broke out yesterday.

The migrants, six Nigerians and a Ghanian, pleaded guilty to assaulting and threatening police and Detention Services officers on duty, causing damage not exceeding €1,165 at the centre and forming part of a group of more than 10 people to commit a crime.

The accused were John Kwaku, 25, from Ghana and Nigerians Ernest Eselebor, 29, Darlington Ubhimihye, 31, Jonathan Moses, 23, Jude Austin, 31, Wisdom Erhunmwunse, 29, and a 17-year-old.

The magistrate took note of their early guilty plea, their clean criminal record and the fact that they regretted their actions.

Lawyer Simon Micallef Stafrace was appointed legal aid lawyer to represent the migrants.

Police Inspectors Kevin Pulis and Johann Fenech prosecuted.

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.