Three men jailed, fined for dealing or intending to deal in drugs

Three men convicted of dealing or intending to deal in drugs were yesterday jailed for six years between them.

They were also fined a total of Lm1,200 by Magistrate Noel Cuschieri who heard all three cases separately.

Eman Zammit, 23, of Zabbar was jailed for 15 months and fined Lm300 for the possession of heroin with intent to sell.

He was also found guilty of the possession of the drug within 100 metres of a school or youth club on and before February 6, 2000.

Joseph Coleiro, 37, of Paola was jailed for three years and fined Lm500 for the possession and trafficking of heroin in January 1997.

He was also found guilty of the possession of heroin with intent to sell on October 14, 1996.

And Joseph John Agius, 32, of Birkirkara was jailed for 20 months and fined Lm400 for the possession and trafficking of heroin between January and June 1998.

Zammit was arrested after police saw him throw away a yellow receptacle near the Zabbar swings and picked it up to find some heroin sachets.

Police then searched Zammit's house and found a magazine with some pages torn and a court expert eventually concluded that the paper in which the heroin was wrapped up formed a mechanical fit with the two-inch square pieces missing from the pages.

In handing down punishment, Magistrate Cuschieri said he had taken into consideration Zammit's relatively clean criminal record, the type and amount of the drug and the fact that Zammit was a drug addict.

Coleiro was arrested after a police raid on his house yielded sachets containing heroin, a bag of heroin and other items related to the use of drugs. The police also found empty sachets.

Coleiro claimed the drug was for his personal use and he had simply bought a substantial amount so as not to have to go shopping every time the urge took him to take drugs.

He also explained that he divided the bag into sachets but got fed up after a while and gave up. Magistrate Cuschieri however said the drug was divided into sachets and the number of the sachets was very relevant.

But a man identified only as XY also testified before Magistrate Cuschieri and claimed he bought heroin from Coleiro. Magistrate Cuschieri said the witness was credible and convicted Coleiro of all the charges brought against him.

He however noted that Coleiro was himself a drug addict but said that he meant to impose a punishment which would serve as an adequate and effective deterrent.

Agius was arrested after a man went to the police and told them his son was taking heroin and was buying it from Agius.

The police questioned the 18-year-old boy who admitted he used heroin and bought it from Agius at the square in Birkirkara.

But Agius denied selling drugs to the boy and actually claimed that it was the boy who brought the drugs for them to share.

Magistrate Cuschieri however ruled that the boy, who remained unidentified in the judgment, was a credible witness in contrast to Agius who was inconsistent and unconvincing and had even contradicted himself in certain matters.

He said he had taken into consideration Agius' relatively clean criminal record, his history of drug use and the fact that he sold drugs more to support his habit rather than to profit.

Magistrate Cuschieri said this last consideration did not exonerate Agius from criminal responsibility but had some bearing on the punishment.

The magistrate also noted that Agius had tried to follow a drug rehabilitation programme a number of times but could not cope with it. He had however recently been admitted to a programme and a jail term would serve to strengthen his determination to kick the habit.

Superintendent Nicholas Ciappara prosecuted.