A 29-year old man from the Ivory Coast has been handed a six-month prison sentence for attempting to leave Malta with false documents. Basseze Sylla was arrested at the airport on Friday as he tried to travel to Brussels with a false passport and Italian residency permit. He was arraigned on Sunday and pleaded guilty to the charge. The prosecution, led by Inspector Lara Butters, said the court should send a strong message against the use of false documents. The inspector said the practice was becoming more common, with passports being bought “as if from a supermarket”. Despite the defence’s argument that the man had cooperated with police, Magistrate Audrey Demicoli sentenced him to six months in prison. The accused was represented by legal aid lawyer Marc Mifsud Cutajar.
