Two men have been jailed for six years each for having set fire to the front door of a family home in Tarxien seven months ago.

Manuel Abela, 31, from Zabbar and Spiridione Costa, 59, from Paola, were arraigned days after the fire broke out at the property in the very early hours of the morning on April 15.

CCTV footage gathered from the scene of the fire confirmed police suspicions that this was a case of arson.

Video footage showed a man approaching the residence with a large bag in hand. A burnt tyre was later retrieved from the site.

After the fire broke out at the front door, the suspect fled in a getaway car that was subsequently tracked down in Paola. Footage from that location showed two men alight and enter a house.

Those men were subsequently identified through daylight footage as Abela and Costa.

The pair were arraigned and initially pleaded not guilty to a raft of charges.

When arrested, Abela had a wound on his nose. Medical examination confirmed that was a burn mark, thus further strengthening investigators’ suspicions.

The men, both unemployed, were jointly charged with arson, causing wilful damage to third-party property, breaching the public peace and disturbing the repose of residents.

Both were also charged with recidivism.

Costa was separately charged with reckless and dangerous driving, ignoring a no-entry sign as well as leading a vagrant and idle life.

Abela was separately charged with disposing of waste material in a public place.

The proceedings against them continued.

More recently, the two co-accused changed their plea and registered an admission which they confirmed after being given time to reconsider.

In light of that admission the court, presided over by Magistrate Astrid May Grima, condemned each of the co-accused to a six-year effective jail term and an order to reimburse the victims €10,454.95 within one year.

Abela was fined €150 (ammenda) while Costa was fined €500 and banned from driving for six months after serving jail time.

The court also issued a protection order valid for three years from the time when the accused have served the term of imprisonment and further bound them under a personal guarantee of €2000 for one year. 

AG lawyer Joseph Camilleri Azarov and Inspectors Mario Xiberras and Jeffrey Scicluna prosecuted.