A Chinese man was condemned to spend the next nine years in prison and ordered to pay a Lm10,000 fine after he pleaded guilty to trafficking in human beings and of forging the stamp on his passport.

Lin Yi, 24, was due to stand trial yesterday, but instead chose to admit all the charges brought against him. He pleaded guilty to trafficking and conspiring to traffic in human beings, to forging his passport and to making malicious use of the counterfeit document.

The bill of indictment explained that Yi arrived in Malta in August 2004 and was allowed to stay for one month. Soon after his arrival, the man got involved in the highly profitable and illegal business of human trafficking.

Together with others, the accused planned the trips that would transport foreign nationals, mostly Chinese, to Italy. The foreigners paid large sums of money for the service and a percentage was given to Yi.

The trafficking crimes were committed between August 2004 and April 2005. The Chinese man also admitted to forging a stamp on his passport some time between 6 and 19 April 2005.

He had extended his leave of stay a number of times since his arrival in Malta but on 30 March 2005, he was given permission to stay until 6 April. However, Yi stayed on the island beyond his welcome and changed the date on his passport from 06/04/05 to 26/04/05.

Yi was apprehended at the Malta International Airport on 19 April 2005, as he tried to leave the island to go to Hong Kong. The authorities noticed the stamp on his passport had been forged and handed him over to police.

Following Yi’s admission, Prosecuting Officer Dr Stephen Tonna Lowell informed the court that the man faced a maximum sentence of 31 and a-half years in prison. However, taking all the circumstances into consideration, he asserted that a nine-year prison term would be adequate punishment.

In his submissions to the court, defence attorney Dr Joseph Giglio pointed out that his client was simply an intermediary in the trafficking operations and had filed an early guilty plea.

When handing down judgment, Mr Justice Joseph Galea Debono noted that the crimes Yi admitted have serious and very grave consequences. He spoke of the “ever accelerating spate of organised trafficking of persons” and the fact that no consideration is made by the traffickers for the safety of the people being transported.

The judge also took into consideration that this illegal activity is resulting in Malta having a negative reputation overseas. He said that foreigners, like the accused, involved in such activities are abusing of Malta’s hospitality and making a profit through illegal means.

In view of all this, Mr Justice Galea Debono declared a nine-year imprisonment and a Lm10,000 fine to be adequate punishment. He said that if the fine is not paid within 15 days, it will automatically be converted to an additional year in prison.

The judge also ordered the time Yi spent in preventative custody in connection with this case to be deducted from his sentence.

The Chinese man is also wanted in Italy to face charges of human trafficking and participating in a criminal organisation. Extradition proceedings against Yi were stayed due to the case decided yesterday.

The proceedings are set to begin once again after he serves the nine-year prison term he was sentenced to yesterday.