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2 maltatoday, WEDNESDAY, 26 AUGUST 2015 News Tragedy survivor gets suspended sentence after leaving Malta illegally Syrian refugee was caught in Sweden and traced back to Malta through the European fingerprint database MAT THEW AGIUS A 31-year-old Syrian refu- gee who survived the 2013 Lampedusa tragedy was yester- day handed a suspended sen- tence after he admitted having left Malta illegally. Feras Al Haddad had arrived in Malta following his rescue from a 2013 tragedy at sea in which hundreds of people died during an attempt to reach Eu- rope by boat. The Syrian had however left the country without informing the authorities and made his way to Sweden, via Germany. Al Haddad was arraigned un- der arrest before Magistrate Charmaine Galea yesterday after he was caught by Swedish police and traced back to Malta through the European finger- print database. Legal aid law yer Simon Mi- callef Stafrace entered a guilty plea, suggesting a suspended sentence for his client. The Syr- ian was handed a six-month sentence, suspended for two years. The magistrate warned Al Haddad that the crime of enter- ing or leaving Malta without a valid passport carried a maxi- mum fine of €11,000 and a cus- todial sentence. "If he is caught and returned to Malta again, there will be no suspended sen- tences," the magistrate said. Bus driver suspended after damaging parked car in Balluta Malta Public Transport suspends bus driver who was filmed in Balluta attemping to get past a parked grey car on its route with unexpected results MALTA Public Transport has suspended a bus driver who damaged a parked car by drag- ging it when he could not get past it in a narrow road in Slie- ma. A video posted on social media on Monday showed the Number 175 bus attempting to drive past the parked car in Balluta, drag- ging it several metres downhill before the car got loose in a yel- low no parking zone. In a statement, MPT apolo- gized to the car's owner and pledged to bear all the costs in- volved in repairing the vehicle. Moreover, it confirmed that the narrow road in question was not part of the scheduled bus route or of the approved diver- sion in the St Julian's area. Two students charged with smuggling 10kg of cocaine MATTHEW AGIUS A court has heard a customs offi- cial give an account of how he had discovered five kilograms of co- caine stashed in a false bottom of a Panamanian student's suitcase. He was testifying in the compila- tion of evidence against two young Panamanian language students, Hector Antonio Montenegro Mar- tinez and Lorena Vanessa Hernan- dez Munoz, who are charged with attempting to smuggle over 10kg of cocaine into the country. The official had inspected the luggage after the authorities had received a tip off that the drugs would be arriving on a flight from Amsterdam. 20-year-old Martinez was arrested upon his arrival at Malta International Airport on 12 August, carrying 5kg of cocaine in a hidden compartment in his suit- case. "I pierced the bottom of the suit- case with a knife. When I pulled it out, the blade was white [with powder]," the customs official told Magistrate Neville Camilleri. Among several items found in the suitcase was a document mention- ing another passenger, Lorena Va- nessa Hernandez Munoz. Munoz, 21, was also arrested af- ter police inquiries led them to her room at Villa Rosa Beach Garden. "We searched her room and found a suitcase. Even after emptying the contents, it was still heavy." Anoth- er 5kg of the drug was found in a false bottom in her suitcase. The court ordered the seizure of all movable and immovable prop- erty belonging to the accused. It also prohibited the accused from transferring any of their property to third parties. Police Inspectors Nikolai Sant and Jonathan Cassar prosecuted. Lawyer Abigail Bugeja is appearing for Martinez and Munoz. The case continues in September. The bus attempted to drive past a parked car and dragged the vehicle several metres downhill Petrol station thief placed on probation after returning stolen cash MAT THEW AGIUS A 21-year-old who admitted stealing €950 from car wash ma- chines at a Fgura petrol station was yesterday handed a proba- tion order. Patrick Pullicino, from Xgħajra, was arraigned before Magistrate Charmaine Galea, accused of stealing cash from the fuel sta- tion's cash collection machines on Sunday night. Pullicino pleaded guilty to the charges. Challenged by law yer Franco Debono, prosecuting inspector Spiridione Zammit conceded that Pullicino had cooperated, going so far as to also hand over the balaclava and clothes he had been wearing on the night of the theft. Magistrate Galea handed a three-year probation order to the accused, pointing out that he faced a potential four-year prison term. In handing down judgment, the court took into account the fact that the money stolen had all been returned and the accused had cooperated fully with the police. "The court is willing to give you a chance," said the magis- trate, warning him that failure to comply with the instructions of his probation officer or com- mitting another crime in the next three years would mean he would be sent to jail. YOUR FIRST CLICK OF THE DAY www.maltatoday.com.mt Cocaine was found hidden in the false bottom of the student's suitcase Two language students from Panama, aged 20 and 21, were charged with attempting to smuggle ten kilos of cocaine into the country