Migrants who escaped from Ħal Safi detention centre denied bail

Twelve of the 20 migrants who escaped yesterday were charged in court today

16 July 2019, 3:46pm
by Matthew Agius

1 min read

A group of 20 migrants escaped from the Ħal Safi detention centre on Monday.

Twelve migrants who escaped from the detention centre at Ħal Safi on Monday have been arraigned in court.

Abdel Hamid Al Banagesh, Fadli Nord, Yassin Noubeai, Mohsem Shaoob, Fakawi Abdigani, Imad Tibibouche, Slimane Derhani, Abubi Sadir, Salah Cheba, Hamza Faraqe, Borgi Nourdine, Mohamed Arabi appeared in court before magistrate Neville Camilleri this morning.

Inspector Trevor Micallef charged the men, whose ages range from 18 to 24, with escaping from lawful custody.

The accused are part of a larger group of migrants, mostly from Morocco, who escaped from the Safi detention centre on Monday morning. The Detention Services said in a statement that the migrants included 19 Moroccans and one Egyptian. They are believed to have arrived in Malta only recently.

Lawyer Joe Brincat, legal aid, entered a plea of not guilty on behalf of the men, who were remanded in custody.

Matthew Agius is Senior Reporter on Law and Court Affairs at MaltaToday. He is also a Leg...