Stephen Smith, the man whose car was shot at by Paul Sheehan, the driver of the former Home Affairs Minister, was today fined €2,000 but was cleared of several other charges in connection with the incident. 

 

Mr Smith was found guilty of damaging the minister’s car through careless driving and driving while under the influence of alcohol. He was also disqualified from holding a driver's licence for nine months,

 

The incident took place in Gzira after 9pm on November 19. An inquiry found that Mr Sheehan fired two shots at Mr Smith's car. The incident led to the forced resignation of former minister Manuel Mallia after claims of a cover-up. 

 

Mr Smith was found guilty of four of 11 charges brought against him. The seven charges of which he was cleared were based on Mr Sheehan's version to the police but these were not corroborated in court because Mr Sheehan refused to testify due to pending criminal action against him. 

 

Mr Sheehan is facing separate criminal proceedings where he stands charged with Mr Smith’s attempted murder. 

 

The other charges against Mr Smit related to the breaching several traffic regulations as well as threatening a police officer on duty. He was cleared of the latter charge because there was no evidence to prove that Mr Sheehan had told Mr Smith that he was a police officer.   And since he was not wearing a uniform, there was no way that Mr smith could have known that Mr Sheehan was a police officer. 

 

Mr Smith was also cleared of charges that he had threatened Mr Sheehan with a Heineken bottle and assaulted him.  

 

On the remaining charges, Magistrate Josette Demicoli ruled that Mr Smith had admitted to drink-driving and to driving under the influence of alcohol. However, she said, the evidence heard in court pointed to careless rather than dangerous driving. 

 

Magistrate Demicoli noted that when Mr Smith's Vauxhall Insignia clipped the minister's Mercedes Benz as a result of miscalculation, but this  also happened because Mr Smith had opted to drive even though he knew he was drunk. 

 

She therefore fined him €2,000 and disqualified him from obtaining a driving licence for nine months.

 

Police Inspector Jonathan Ransley prosecuted while lawyers Joe Giglio and James D'Agostino appeared for Mr Smith.