Court decries ‘rampant’ passport crime

A court has decried “rampant” passport related crime as yet another case relating to misuse of a passport ended up before it today.

This as Wade Defall from Senegal was arraigned before magistrate Rachel Montebello, accused of trying to use a Senegalese passport and an Italian travel document - both of which were issued to a third party - to leave Malta.

Barely a day goes by in court without somebody being arraigned on passport-related crimes, be they forgery or use of another person’s travel documents.

The court expressed its exasperation at the fact that this type of crime showed no sign of being curbed. “It is just rampant,” said the exasperated magistrate.

Defall’s lawyer, Martin Fenech, explained that the man had “simply wanted to pick up his real passport from Italy.” A custodial sentence would not be fitting in this case, said the lawyer.

The court, having heard Defall plead guilty, sentenced the man to one year in prison, suspended for 18 months.

Inspector Hubert Gerada prosecuted.