Four men on Tuesday admitted to breaching immigration laws by carrying false documents.

Two of them had been stopped at Malta International Airport while attempting to travel out of the country, whereas the other two had managed to get out of the country, only to be stopped by immigration authorities in Italy and sent back to Malta to face justice.

The prosecution insisted upon an effective jail term.

Presiding Magistrate Joseph Mifsud said the court could not "close an eye as to the fact that Immigration Laws have been breached,” adding that such offences had become a somewhat “constant phenomenon”.

“With all due respect, it was not acceptable for a person to enter and exit national territory with false documents, trying to deceive Immigration Authorities both locally and abroad,” Magistrate Mifsud continued when delivering judgment.

Such offences could “undermine State security” and for this reason, the Maltese State should show a “keen interest to find out the true identity of whoever entered the country,” the Magistrate stressed, “especially in times of upheaval, conflicts and terrorism in various parts of the world” including those close to Maltese territory.

He took note of the accused’s early guilty plea and the fact that all four had no fixed address, condemning them to a six-month effective jail term each.

In respect of the Egyptian nationals, the court urged the relevant authorities to take the necessary measures to repatriate them once they served their sentence and the asylum process was over, since Egypt was considered a “safe country”.

Inspector Frankie Sammut prosecuted. Lawyer Yanika Bugeja was legal aid counsel to the Sudanese men. Lawyer Mark Attard Montalto was legal aid counsel to the other accused.

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