A man who was sentenced to six months imprisonment for refusing to reveal his accomplices in the failed HSBC heist 12 years ago, despite a plea bargain, has had his term reduced by half.

Daren Debono, known as it-Topo, was meant to give evidence in terms of a plea bargain agreement struck at the eleventh hour before his trial and that of his co-accused, Vince Muscat, known as il-Koħħu.

The attempted robbery had ended up in a shoot-out between the robbers and the police. But in the surprise plea bargain, prosecutors had dropped an attempted homicide charge against Debono in exchange for testimony.

As a result, Debono was sentenced to a ten-and-a-half-year jail term.

But when, last February, he was asked to testify before the Magistrates’ Court, Debono declared that he would not name anyone else involved save for Muscat, because he feared for his safety and that of his family.  

Magistrate Monica Vella had ordered the reluctant witness’s immediate arrest and within 24 hours he was arraigned and charged for having refused to testify.

He was handed a six-month jail term and fined €4,600.

His lawyers filed an appeal, and trial proceedings against Muscat were put on hold.

On Thursday, the Court of Criminal Appeal, presided over by Mr Justice Aaron Bugeja, confirmed Debono’s guilt but not on the more serious charge of recidivism, ruling that he was guilty of the more generic offence under article 49 of the Criminal Code.

For this reason, the court reduced the punishment to a 3-month jail term, whilst confirming the rest of the judgment.

Lawyers Edward Gatt and Mark Vassallo were counsel to the appellant.