A Syrian man was handed a suspended sentence today after admitting to the possession of someone else's Italian identity card.

Magistrate Antonio Micallef Trigona heard how Mohamed Ahmed Chawki, 43, who works as a chef, arrived in Malta on a Turkish Airlines flight yesterday.

When his identification documents were checked, immigration officers found that although the identity card was genuine, the accused had replaced the photograph with his own.

Police Inspector Mario Haber said the accused said he was willing to leave Malta on the next flight to Turkey.

The court jailed him for six months suspended for a year and ordered his immediate deportation.

Lawyer Mark Mifsud Cutjar was legal aid.