Man kicks drug habit in 14-year trafficking court case

A man has been cleared of drug-trafficking after a 14-year court battle, during which time he managed to kick his longstanding drug habit thanks to the help he received while behind bars. 

Tunisian-born Walid Laouini, 41, had been facing the prospect of another jail term over aggravated possession and trafficking of cannabis resin following investigations which kicked off in June 2006.

Acting upon information that the man was possibly involved in drug trafficking, police had approached some youths outside a private residence at Salina. One of the youngsters had a piece of cannabis resin which he claimed to have bought from a man living in a nearby flat.

Later that day, officers had searched the apartment, finding two men, the accused and a colleague of his, who claimed to have been fixing the TV set and was spotted turning away from the bedroom balcony just as the police entered the room.

The accused’s friend subsequently explained how they had been installing a wire outside on the balcony when police turned up that evening. 

A search of the premises had yielded nothing but policemen had discovered a Pringles tub lying in a field beneath the accused’s apartment. Inside was a piece of cannabis resin, weighing 3.01 grams, two Lm5 notes and a torn Lm10 note. 

The owner of the flat was prosecuted over cannabis trafficking and possession under circumstances indicating that the drug was not for his personal use. 

Magistrate Natasha Galea Sciberras observed that the only determining proof against the accused was the statement he released under interrogation and what he had told police at the scene of crime. 

Delving into a detailed study of local and ECHR case-law on the right to legal assistance in the pre-arraignment stage, the court concluded that the accused’s statement, given without any legal assistance at a time when Maltese law prohibited this was not to be allowed as evidence against him.

Any testimony referring to such statements by the accused were also inadmissible, the court said. 

The right to consult a lawyer prior to police questioning had been introduced in 2010 following several cases finding Malta in breach of suspects’ rights. This was later amended again giving suspects the right to have their lawyers present during interrogations.

Magistrate Galea Sciberras noted further that the search inside the accused’s flat had given no results and the man stopped outside his home had neither mentioned the name of his supplier nor did he identify the accused in court. 

Whilst commenting upon the “great coincidence” of the drug-bearing tub right beneath the accused’s balcony, the court concluded that the evidence put forward by the prosecution did not suffice to prove the accused’s guilt beyond reasonable doubt.

The court also observed that the accused, whilst serving a jail term over a separate case, had sought help in 2017, embarking upon a Prison Inmates Programme, registering “satisfactory progress” and making a success story out of his term behind bars. 

In the light of all this, the court cleared the accused of all criminal liability.

Lawyer David Gatt was defence counsel.