Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/718140
2 maltatoday, WEDNESDAY, 24 AUGUST 2016 News U21 players coerced into losing Montenegro match MATTHEW AGIUS A court has exempted Under 21 national football team players Kyle Cesare and Emanuel Briffa from criminal responsibility for their involvement in the rigging of an away game that Malta lost to Montenegro last March, say- ing they had been coerced. Up to nine Malta players had been approached and asked to be involved in fixing the match against Montenegro on 23rd March this year, but the plan fell through after Cesare and Briffa were the only two who accepted the offer. In the sentence, which was handed down yesterday, Mag- istrate Joe Mifsud praised the members of Malta's National Under-21 football team who had outrightly refused the attempts at match-fixing. Police investigations were start- ed on Saturday 26th March, after MFA Integrity Officer Franz Ta- bone informed them of the possi- bility that the Montenegro match had been fixed, as had another U21 match Malta was due to play against the Czech Republic, the following Tuesday. Officers had questioned several players, which led to the identifi- cation of Seyble Zammit, a for- mer youth player for Valletta FC, as the person who had attempted to convince players to throw the match. Arrested and subsequent- ly questioned, in April, Zammit had admitted to having organ- ised the rigging of the game after being offered €7,000 by former AFM soldier Ronnie Mackay. Zammit was convicted but ex- empted from punishment on ac- count of his invaluable collabora- tion with the police. Mackay had previously been convicted of attempting to rob a showroom together with two other soldiers in 2014. Before that, in December 2013, Mac- kay had been accused of bribing Naxxar player Sunday Eboh in a 2012 game against Gzira. Crimi- nal proceedings against Mackay for his involvement in the Mon- tenegro scandal are due to begin in September. A plea bargaining agreement is reportedly on the table. Cesare and Briffa faced charges of conspiracy to commit a crime under the Prevention of Cor- ruption (Players) Act and of ac- cepting or agreeing to accept compensation for actions which would benefit the opposing team – charges which carry prison sentences. In a judgement he handed down yesterday, Magistrate Mifsud, himself a passionate football fan, described match-fixing as "one of the greatest threats to sport in our time." He added a compelling list of quotes on the perils of rigging sports, including by the United Nations, the European Parlia- ment, the International Olympic Committee, foreign prosecutors and players whose careers had been ruined by match-fixing con- victions. Noting that the accused had not proceeded to negotiate their compensation for throwing the match, the court pointed out that a conspiracy to commit a crime – in this case to fix the match – on- ly subsists when the parties agree upon a plan. As this element was missing, there was no conspiracy, the court held. The men's defence counsel had argued that the accused had been coerced into participating in the deal. The court upheld this argu- ment, declaring that the evidence showed that the immaturity of the two accused players had been exploited. They had been af- fected by peer pressure or social pressure, the magistrate held. "The pressure exerted on the players by the particular cir- cumstances could not be easily resisted," noted the court. The involvement of an Asian or Chi- nese syndicate, and the constant contact with Seyble Zammit on their mobile phones had to be taken into account when decid- ing whether the accused had act- ed freely, Magistrate Mifsud said, holding that the players had no alternative in the circumstances. "It is a question of coercion when... a person who committed the criminal act could not, in the circumstances he found himself in, free himself from the external forces in any other way," said the court. Inspector Sean Scicluna pros- ecuted. Lawyers Stefano Filletti, Clifton Grima and Charlene Gri- ma appeared for the players. Defender Emanuel Briffa (fourth from right) and midfielder Kyle Cesare (fourth from left) have been cleared of match-fixing Strong winds and rough seas put swimmers and sea vessels in difficulty STRONG winds turned other- wise picturesque bays around Malta and Gozo into dan- ger spots, with around seven swimmers reported to have found themselves in difficulty throughout yesterday. According to reports, one of the swimmers, a young girl, is even in a critical condition. Red f lags were f lying over many beaches to signal the potential danger of such adverse weather conditions, with waves violent enough to put even sea vessels in significant difficulty. Passers-by at the Tal-Fekruna area in St Paul 's Bay took to so- cial media to post images of a yacht sinking off the coast, in an attempt to alert the owner of the vessel, called Nina Mia. Other media reports claimed that the owner had since been contacted. An image of the yacht sinking off the Tal-Fekruna area in St Paul's Bay was shared over social media in an attempt to alert the owner Elderly man critical after fall A 78-year-old man suffered grievous injuries and is in criti- cal condition after falling down the stairs at his Dingli residence. A press release by the police force said that they were in- formed of the case on Monday at around 11pm by the man's wife, when they were called for assistance to a residence in Triq Santa Marija. Preliminary investigations showed that the man was found on a landing in the staircase, and that the woman had been alert- ed to the situation by hearing a thud. The man was unconscious by the time his wife got to him. The man was rushed to Mater Dei hospital where he was given further medical attention and certified to be critical. Police investigations are still underway. Two arrested after police seize 15kgs of cocaine hidden in imported car POLICE seized 15kgs of a sub- stance suspected to be cocaine from a car arriving from Italy yesterday, arresting two Maltese men. The police drugs squad together with the Law Enforcement Sec- tion from customs stopped the car that made its way from Italy to Malta and was reasonably sus- pected to be carrying drugs. 15kg of what is alleged to be co- caine was found in the rear of the vehicle. Duty magistrate Neville Camill- eri appointed several experts to assist in the investigation. The two men, a 66-year-old from Qormi and a 23-year-old from Ghajnsielem, are expected to be arraigned in court on charg- es of importation and conspiracy to import drugs and aggravated possession of cocaine, according to a police statement. Additionally, the drug squad ar- rested a Somali man aged 29, in Paceville on Monday in the late afternoon after he was observed trying to traffic cannabis and cannabis resin. Police sources said there is a possibility of the man also being brought before a court on charges of aggravated possession of can- nabis resin and possession of a cannabis plant or part of a plant.