Migrants who escaped detention centre jailed for six months

The two migrants from Morocco had reached Maltese shores only a week ago before they escaped and spent 24 hours on the run

24 September 2019, 4:14pm
by Matthew Agius

1 min read

The two accused had spent less than a week inside the Safi detention centre before their escape

Two migrants who escaped from detention just a week after arriving in Malta have been jailed.

Jamal Momen, 21 and Yousef Busenah, 22, both from Morocco, had reached Maltese shores barely a week ago. The pair had escaped from the Safi Detention Centre on Monday at around 2pm and were found and arrested after spending around 24 hours on the run.

Assisted by an Arabic-speaking interpreter, the two accused pleaded guilty to a single charge of escaping from custody.

Duty magistrate Caroline Farrugia Frendo gave the men time to reconsider their admission of guilt but they reiterated their guilty plea.

In view of this, Momen and Busenah were sentenced to imprisonment for six months.

Inspector Roderick Attard prosecuted.

Lawyer Noel Bartolo was legal aid counsel.

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