A 45-year-old man who set fire to the prison cell he was in - and attempted to set another fire three days later - has been jailed for five years over the two incidents.

The incident took place on 4 March, 2012, after prison wardens searched the cell of Libyan national Faiz Omar Elsallak and discovered what they felt was a suspicious white liquid in a glass.

Mr Elsallak protested that this was simply the glass he put his dentures in - and subsequent tests proved that no illicit substances were found - but he was transferred to a cell in Division 6, a maximum security block often used for punitive purposes.

In his testimony, Mr Elsallak claimed that his transfer to Division 6 was in breach of a court order, and that he sought to attract the wardens' attention in a bid to be let out.

He said that he first took a blade and self-harmed, but when this brought no response, he placed the mattress against the cell door and set fire to it.

Inmates in adjacent cells raised the alarm, and the fire was put out by prison wardens, but not before causing extensive damage to the cell.

Mr Elsallak was subsequently taken to Mount Carmel Hospital, and discharged two days later.

But he was involved in another incident the very next morning.

That day, he was involved in a fight with two other inmates, and prison wardens intervened to break up the fight and escorted him to his cell.

Mr Elsallak protested once more, continually ringing the alarm before he started another fire using a piece of paper.

Prison wardens quickly intervened, only for Mr Elsallak to assault them, allegedly biting one and causing him slight injuries.

Mr Elsallak faced two charges over the first incident: arson and causing wilful damage.

He faced another seven charges over the second incident, including attempted arson, threatening five prison wardens, preventing them from carrying out their duties, assaulting them and causing slight injuries to one of them. He was also charged with relapsing.

Magistrate Neville Camilleri found Mr Elsallak guilty of nine of the ten charges he faced - he was acquitted of assaulting the prison wardens because of an error in the charge sheet.

In light of Mr Elsallak's 'colourful' criminal record, the nature of the crimes committed and the fact that they were carried out in prison, the magistrate decided to jail him for 5 years.