A man who was found guilty of setting his boat on fire in July 2002 yesterday had his jail term reduced from six years to four years after an Appeal’s Court upheld the defence plea for a lesser punishment on the grounds of legal submissions.

Valentine Sciberras, 64, from Birkirkara, was found guilty of setting his boat on fire, voluntarily damaging nearby sea vessels, filing a false police report and taking a false statement before a court expert. The Magistrates’ Court had jailed Sciberras for six years and ordered a general interdiction for a period of 10 years. Sciberras appealed the judgement.

Mr Justice Joseph Galea Debono, who presided over the Appeals Court, ruled that the court expert before whom, according to the original charges, Sciberras took a false statement was not given the power to take statements under oath and therefore the first court should have not found Sciberras guilty of this crime. He was cleared of this charge.

The Appeal’s Court also upheld another of the defence lawyers’ submissions that their client could not be found guilty of voluntarily damaging other sea vessels nearby since he was accused with another article of the Criminal Code. He was therefore also cleared of this charge.

Another of the defence’s submissions on an unsigned document which was filed as evidence in the case was also upheld by the Appeals Court which ruled that such a document – a letter sent to the police with just a signature and without a full name of the person who did not even testify in court – should have never been accepted as evidence.

As a result, Mr Justice Galea Debono found Sciberras guilty of only two of the five charges on which he was declared guilty by the first court. He therefore reduced the jail term from six years to four years. The 10-year general interdiction was also revoked.

Police Inspector Silvio Valletta prosecuted while Dr Joe Giglio and Dr Beppe Fenech Adami appeared for the accused.