A man was spared an effective jail term over a drug offence 16 years ago when he was badly hooked on drugs after the court observed that he had “successfully” followed a care plan and made “concrete steps” towards rehabilitation. 

Mario Fenech, now 41, had been handed an eight-month effective jail term and a €1,000 fine after being declared guilty by a Magistrates’ Court in 2018, 11 years after the day when the Mercedes vehicle he was driving caught the attention of police officers. 

That evening, in 2007, two officers on patrol in Qormi had spotted the silver Mercedes Benz model with tinted glass. 

They honked their horn signaling the Mercedes driver to stop so that they could draw his attention to the tinted windows. 

But as soon as he sensed police presence, the driver sped off, driving haphazardly with the police in tow. 

He then threw something out of the Mercedes window. 

The item, which was later retrieved by the police, consisted of a bag filled with a brownish substance that was later examined by a scientific expert who confirmed it was 4.9 grams of heroin, 31.4% pure. 

The court-appointed scientist said that that amount could make 49 sachets each having 0.1 grams of the drug. 

The accused appealed the conviction. 

When delivering judgment, the court of criminal appeal, presided over by Mr Justice Neville Camilleri, took note of various factors including the nature of the charges, Fenech’s criminal record, the lapse of time since the charges dating back to 2007 as well as the fact that urine tests showed that the accused no longer abused of cocaine and heroin. 

A psychologist reported that Fenech had reached a very advanced stage in his addiction but had since managed to take “concrete steps” to rehabilitate himself. 

His case had been referred to the Drug Offenders Rehabilitation Board in terms of the Drug Dependence (Treatment not Imprisonment) Act.

The board had noted the way the “client had followed the care plan” and consequently considered his case “successfully closed”.

Moreover, Fenech had no other pending cases in court. 

When all was considered, the court considered the appellant to be a suitable candidate in terms of law and was satisfied that, on a balance of probability, his criminal wrongdoing was attributable to his drug addiction.

Consequently, while confirming the conviction, converted the jail term to a one-year term suspended for two years.

The €1,000 fine fell well within the parameters prescribed by law and the court saw no reason to reduce that amount. 

The €767.70 in court expert expenses were also confirmed. 

The court ordered the release of the money and mobile seized from the accused and confirmed the destruction of the drug.

Lawyers Franco Debono, Marion Camilleri and Francesca Zarb were defence counsel.