Man jailed 11 years after admitting to importing cannabis

A man has been sentenced to 11 years in prison and fined €23,000 after pleading guilty to importing cannabis into Malta and conspiring to traffic the drug, just two months before he was due to stand trial by jury in February.

Goran Dimovski, 31, Macedonia, admitted the charges before the Criminal Court on Thursday morning, bringing an abrupt end to proceedings that had been ongoing for more than two years.

Dimovski had been indicted for importing cannabis grass into Malta on or before 21 April 2022, as well as for participating in a criminal conspiracy to sell or distribute the drug on the islands.

The attorney general and the defence filed a joint application earlier this week informing the court that they had reached an agreement. Dimovski confirmed his understanding of the plea agreement in open court and told the judge he did not require any further time to reconsider.

In sentencing, the court stressed the gravity of the offences, noting that the importation and intended distribution of drugs remain among the most serious crimes under Maltese law due to their impact on public safety and social wellbeing.

The court also reviewed several factors before deciding whether to accept the recommended sentence. These included Dimovski’s clean criminal record, the seriousness of the charges, and the fact that his guilty plea, although entered at a relatively advanced stage, still prevented the empanelment of a jury scheduled for February 2026, thus sparing considerable court resources.

The court referred to long-standing local and foreign jurisprudence that encourages the reduction of sentences when an accused enters an early guilty plea. Although Dimovski’s admission was not “early” in the strict sense, the judge acknowledged that it came before the logistical preparations of a full jury trial, giving it procedural value.

In addition to the custodial sentence and €23,000 fine, Dimovski was ordered to pay €2,755.17 in expert costs, covering forensic reports and investigative analysis carried out throughout the proceedings.

The court further directed the destruction of all seized drugs and drug-related items, unless the attorney general indicates within 15 days that they are needed in other prosecutions. All property belonging to Dimovski, movable and immovable, was also forfeited to the state, in line with anti-drug trafficking legislation that mandates the confiscation of assets linked to criminal activity.

With the guilty plea formally accepted and the agreed-upon punishment deemed lawful and appropriate, the court declared Dimovski guilty on both counts in the indictment. He was led to begin serving his 11-year effective prison term immediately after sentencing.

The case now joins a series of recent decisions in which Maltese courts have emphasised firm penalties for drug importation, while simultaneously encouraging resolution through plea agreements that conserve judicial time and resources.

Judge Neville Camilleri presided over the case.