Two migrants remanded in custody for arson at Safi barracks

Two migrants were remanded in custody after participating in a riot on 12 December at the Safi barracks and setting fire to a tent.

The migrants, both from Egypt, were also charged with damage caused to state property, taking part in a riot with intent to break the law, disobeying police orders, and disrupting public order.

The incident took place on 12 December between 11am and 2pm. Guma Mohammed, 30, and Yousef Halef Abdel Hamid, 26, were amongst 11 to be arrested after the riot.

The court heard on Friday, how Mohammed and Hamid voluntarily set fire to a tent inside the detention centre in Safi without being aware whether there were any other migrants sleeping inside the structure.

Both men pleaded not guilty to all charges.

The prosecution, led by Inspector Roderick Attard, initially also charged them with injuring a police constable by hitting him in the head with a metal object but this charge was dropped.

Legal aid lawyer Raisa Colombo did not ask for bail at this stage especially since they were unemployed and residents inside the detention centre with no other place to stay.

She told the court that she would be defending either one of the two migrant men but not both since their cases would be heard separately and there might be a time conflict with their trials.

The court, presided over by magistrate Caroline Farrugia Frendo, ordered that the two men be remanded in police custody until the next hearing.