A drunk tourist who got into trouble with police after quarrelling with his wife at a Mellieħa hotel on Monday night was given a suspended sentence and an €800 fine upon arraignment on Wednesday.

Polish-national Adam Andrzej Kuza, 37, was meant to head back home on Tuesday but his holiday in Malta ended on a bad note when he got into trouble with four police officers who were alerted to a disturbance at the hotel.

The Qawra police were called in when a quarrel broke out between the man and his wife at their Mellieħa. 

The woman evidently needed medical assistance, said prosecuting Inspector Roderick Attard during the husband’s arraignment on Wednesday afternoon.

However, the man refused to let the police call for help and threatened to “kill them” if they dared touch his wife. He was clearly drunk.

In fact, it later turned out that the couple had been to a boat party earlier that day and had then been bar-hopping before downing a few more drinks at the hotel bar, explained Attard. 

The now-sober and repentant Kuza pleaded guilty to threatening and reviling the police officers who were carrying out their duties, failing to obey legitimate orders and willfully disturbing public peace. 

“I’m a good citizen. I pay taxes in my country. If this is resolved today, we will go back home tomorrow with good memories of this country and of the Maltese people,” said the accused, after confirming his guilty plea when given time to consult his lawyer to reconsider his admission.

Although the accused had cooperated “after a couple of hours” following the drunken episode, the prosecutor requested the court to impose a punishment that was “slightly above the minimum”.

Such incidents were happening more frequently and in view of the upcoming festive season, such punishment would send out a message, said the inspector.

However, legal aid lawyer Martha Mifsud promptly shot down that argument.

“The court should not be used to set an example and differentiate between one case and another depending on the season,” argued the lawyer.

Each case was to be assessed on its own merits and to do otherwise would be unfair and against the rule of law. 

After hearing submissions, the court, presided over by magistrate Leonard Caruana, handed down an 18-month jail term suspended for two years and an €800 fine which was the minimum in light of the charges.