Stealing, possessing false documents and drugs were the three reasons criminals were most likely to end up behind bars in 2019.
An average of 19 people a week were sent to prison last year, according to data tabled recently in parliament by Home Affairs Minister Byron Camilleri in reply to Opposition MP Mario Galea’s question. That accounts for 963 jail terms.
Five people were convicted of murder, which carries a sentence of up to life imprisonment, while eight were jailed for attempted homicide.
The most likely reason for a jail term was for a conviction of theft. Some 173 people were imprisoned for theft, of which 126 were aggravated (serious) and a further 16 cases involved attempted aggravated theft or being an accomplice.
A further 29 jail terms were handed out for car thefts and cases where the victim was an elderly person.
120 jailed for possession of false documents
Drug-related crimes totalled 102, of which 90 involved trafficking convictions and nine cases of importation. There was only one case in which a jail term was inflicted for drug possession and two for cultivation.
Cases of possession of false documents including travellers presenting fake or expired passports were significant with 120 people jailed.
From the data it also emerged that 52 prison terms were inflicted by the courts in connection with domestic violence, including a case of murder, a conviction for attempted homicide and two cases of rape. Most of those imprisoned in connection with domestic violence were over threats (21), causing slight injuries (12) and grievous bodily harm (9).
Apart from these cases there were 17 convictions for rape, including four cases where the victim was a minor, nine jail terms for defilement and corruption of minors and seven cases for participating in sexual activities with minors.
Four people were jailed for profiting from prostitution and five for managing a brothel while there were two prison terms for loitering.
A total of 25 people were jailed for arson and another 32 for causing wilful damage.
In 2019, just three people were jailed for money laundering, 22 over fraud and misappropriation, seven for organised crime and one for bribery.
A significant number of jail terms were related to breaching public order whereby 95 people ended up behind bars.
There were also 46 cases in which the perpetrator decided to convert a court-inflicted fine to a jail term as they lacked the financial means to pay.
Last year, there were 38 cases in which a suspect who had been granted bail while undergoing criminal proceedings was imprisoned after breaching the conditions or due to revocation of liberty by a court.
The list also includes 24 cases in which inmates who escaped from custody ended up back behind bars after being apprehended.
Jail terms inflicted by Maltese courts in 2019
Thefts - 173
False documents - 120
Drugs - 102
Breaching public order - 95
Domestic violence - 52
Fine converted to jail - 46
Revocation of bail - 38
Wilful damage - 32
Arson - 25
Escape from detention - 24
Fraud - 22
Rape* - 17
Prostitution-related - 11
Homicide* - 8
Attempted homicide* - 5
Money laundering - 3
*excluding domestic violence cases
Sensational cases that landed criminals behind bars in 2019
Murder: One of the most sensational murder convictions last year was of former school teacher Erin Tanti, who was jailed for 20 years after he admitted murdering 15-year-old Lisa Maria Zahra at Dingli Cliffs in 2014.
Theft: Fr Deo Debono, the former parish priest of the Augustinian parish in Valletta, was given a two-year prison sentence, suspended for four years, after admitting to stealing artworks from his convent.
Rape: Seydou Bandaogo, from Burkina Faso, was sentenced to 20 years in prison for kidnapping and raping an Italian woman in Pembroke. Another man, Emanuel Makuochukwu Ngumezi, from Nigeria, was also involved in abducting the woman. They were caught after passers by heard the woman’s screams for help.