Lineker David Micallef, 28, today was acquitted of drug trafficking charges brought against him, after the courts held that the prosecution did not manage to effectively prove its case.
Mr Micallef was charged with drug trafficking after heroin was found in his possession in July 2006. It was alleged that the way the heroin was found indicated that it was not exclusively for personal use.
He was also charged with relapsing and committing a crime while on a suspended sentence.
While testifying in court, the prosecutor, Inspector Pierre Grech said that on 3 July, 2006 CID police noticed a person riding a motorbike under suspicious circumstances, leading them to believe that the bike had been stolen.
He said that the person, discovered to be Dennis Cilia, was pulled over. Inspector Portelli added that Mr Cilia was sent by Mr Micallef to meet a third person, identified as a man named Toni. It was said that Toni was instructed to pass along around 4 grams of heroin to Mr Cilia, who was then supposed to give them to Mr Micallef.
Inspector Portelli added that Mr Cilia released 2 statements, which were confirmed under oath before Magistrate Neville Camilleri, who presided over the case. In the meantime, Mr Micallef was arrested, and denied ever selling heroin, however admitted to abusing it.
Testifying in court, Mr Cilia explained how he was stopped by the police on the day in question. He confirmed that the accused gave him the motorbike to use that day. He also confirmed that Mr Micallef instructed him to go meet a third person, Toni, and bring him the drugs. He said that was not to make any payments, because Toni and Mr Micallef had already made arrangements. He also said that it was the first time he was sent by the accused to pick up drugs. He added that generally speaking, he purchases drugs from the accused, and pays between 7-10 Maltese Lira per packet. He said that Mr Micallef had promised him a small amount of heroin in exchange for meeting Toni. He concluded by saying that the accused, Mr Micallef, was heavily dependent on the drug.
Mr Micallef confirmed that he knew Mr Cilia well, but that he was jealous and had vindictive intentions. He said that at the time he was not selling drugs, so much so that when he was searched by the police, no drugs or money were found. He said that he did not know why Mr Cilia made such a statement.
In its ruling, the courts held that due to the conflicting statements, the judgement hinged on the credibility of Mr Cilia’s version of events.
It continued that the testimony of Mr Cilia had to be discredited due to a number of factors. Psychiatrist Joseph Spiteri testified that there was a time when Mr Cilia was having delusions due to his psychosis. In addition to this, Dr Spiteri also said that he suffered from paranoia.
The courts also took into consideration Mr Cilia’s former girlfriend denied knowing the accused, even though he had insisted that she was around when buying drugs from the accused.
In light of all this, the courts acquitted Mr Micallef from all charges.