A man, who set fire to a number of vehicles inside a garage underlying a Sliema apartment block in a “cold-blooded” manner was jailed for four years after admitting to the arson.
Ion Busuioc, a 24-year-old Romanian national, initially pleaded not guilty when arraigned in November but changed his plea earlier this month.
Residents of the block in Howard Street were evacuated after being woken up by the blaze, while a number of vehicles, including a BMW 520D, a Land Rover, a Honda and a KTM motorcycle were destroyed.
CCTV footage led to the identification of the suspect who was arrested and subsequently charged with willfully setting fire to the vehicles, knowing that there were people inside the overlying apartments.
When delivering judgment on Tuesday the court observed that although that admission was registered quite early in the proceedings, it did not militate much in favour of the accused who acted in “cold blood”.
The man had moved from one vehicle to the next, setting each on fire and thus increasing the danger for those who slept in the overlying apartments.
It was not a single, isolated act that he committed but the danger was bigger at a time when people were asleep, well aware of the fatal consequences his actions could have triggered, observed Magistrate Donatella Frendo Dimech.
Luckily, the fire did not spread.
Moreover, the court could not fail to note or ignore the fact that arson cases were becoming “more and more frequent”.
Busuioc’s behaviour instilled “terror in many” and until he is well and truly rehabilitated, he should not be allowed to roam freely within society.
On the strength of the evidence put forward and in light of case law on the subject, the court declared the accused guilty upon his own admission and condemned him to a four-year effective jail term.
The court also placed him under a three-year treatment order as well as a restraining order not to approach any of the victims and their families.
Finally, the court recommended that once the accused had served punishment, the principal immigration officer should consider exercising his powers in terms of law to order the man’s deportation.
Inspectors Mario Xiberras and Eman Hayman prosecuted, together with AG lawyers Nathaniel Falzon and Andreas Vella.