A woman who had been condemned to a suspended jail term after admitting to having assisted an expectant mother to abort her seven-week-old unborn child has had her punishment confirmed on appeal.

Back in November 2014, Soumia Mansouri had been condemned by a Magistrates’ Court to a jail term of 18 months suspended for three years.

However, the woman filed an appeal, arguing that her admission had been based on wrong information supplied by the prosecution. Had she known otherwise, she would never have pleaded guilty to the charge.

Analysing the facts of the case, the court of appeal, presided over by Mr Justice Giovanni Grixti, noted that on November 9, 2014, a woman had been admitted to the Mater Dei emergency department, complaining of “excruciating lower abdominal pain”.

A physical examination of the patient had yielded “four hexagonal tablets” placed inside her private parts.

The woman had admitted to having personally applied the tablets, which she had allegedly obtained from Tunis, in order to “stop the pain.”

A medical examination had certified the existence of a foetal heartbeat, which had subsequently ceased and the woman had aborted.

While in hospital, the patient had admitted that she had consumed and applied the pills which had been given to her by the accused, in order to have an abortion.

The police were called in and criminal action was taken against the accused who, upon her arraignment before the Magistrates’ Court had immediately admitted to the charge.

The prosecution had explained that criminal steps had been instituted against the accused after due consultation with medical experts under authorization by the inquiring magistrate.

The court of appeal dismissed the claim of the appellant, concluding that the appeal had come about solely because the accused had second thoughts about her earlier admission.

The prosecution had followed proper procedure in granting the accused all her rights. Criminal action had been based on information supplied by the victim as well as on medical evidence of “a live pregnancy” upon the victim's admission to hospital.

For this reason, the court turned down the appeal and confirmed the earlier judgment sentencing the accused to an 18-month jail term suspended for three years.