Jailed for using fake passport

A Libyan national has been jailed for eight months after admitting to using a fake passport while travelling from Libya to the UK through Malta.  Prosecuting officer Darren Buhagiar charged Essam Hamad Elkershine, 28, with using a fake British residency permit.  The accused, Insp. Buhagiar told the court, was arrested at the airport after having arrived from Mitiga in Libya. His intention was to board another flight to Edinburgh.  After consulting with a lawyer, the accused told the police he would be requesting asylum.  Insp. Buhagiar appealed for an effective prison sentence to act as a deterrent to others who use fake documents to travel to Malta and ask for asylum.  Legal aid lawyer Martin Fenech pointed out that the accused's intention was not to seek asylum. It was also not the first time that the courts have handed down a suspended sentence after taking into consideration the tumultuous situation of the accused's country of origin, Dr Fenech added.  Magistrate Charmaine Galea sentenced the accused to eight months imprisonment.

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