13 Homeless People Sentenced To Two Months In Detention
13 homeless people have been sentenced to two months in detention after pleading guilty to living an idle and vagrant life as well as begging, Times of Malta reported.
The individuals, who hail from Somalia, Sudan, Gambia, Malta, Italy, Nigeria and Libya, and consist of 13 men and a woman, were brought in different groups before magistrate Astrid May Grima on Monday morning.
Another man was given a two-month prison term after he admitted to recidivism.
Defence lawyer Roberta Bonello informed the court that all nine accused were pleading guilty and were prepared to face the consequences. However, she argued that the government now had a responsibility to step in and provide the necessary support – both for the individuals’ own rehabilitation and for the benefit of society at large – to prevent them from falling back into the same cycle.
The court subsequently recommended that the individuals in question be given the assistance they needed.
During sentencing submissions, Police Inspector Gabria Gatt called for the maximum sentence permitted by law, stating that authorities still needed time to secure proper assistance for the accused.
The defence disagreed, urging the court to consider the minimum punishment given their admission of guilt. Bonello stressed that what was truly needed was a long-term solution for people who had ended up homeless.
Legal aid lawyer Martin Fenech, representing several of the accused, echoed this, stating they had “ended up in a situation that was not of their own making.”
The court then heard separate cases against a man and a woman facing the same charges. In the man’s case, the police noted he was scheduled to join a YMCA rehabilitation programme but still requested the maximum sentence. The same request was made for the woman.
Both were found guilty and sentenced to two months in detention.
After sentencing, the woman protested in court, insisting: “I never begged for a cent – my only crime was loving a dog.”
The court ordered that the judgment be sent to the justice minister, home affairs minister and social policy minister, to bring to their attention the situation and recommend that they are given the necessary assistance to avoid them from committing the same offences.
Magistrate Astrid May Grima presided.