A 32 year old man from Togo was remanded in custody yesterday morning, after he escaped to Germany.

Harun Nasir Iddris was found to be making use of a false Italian passport, as he tried to make his way to Germany, where he was arrested and sent back to Malta.

The accused had already been fined e500 in Germany, and someone could not be tried twice for the same crime in Europe, legal aid lawyer Martin Fenech claimed. His client pleaded not guilty to making use of a counterfeit passport.

Police Inspector Geoffrey Azzopardi countered that this was an administrative fine, and was meant to cover the costs of the return flight.

Magistrate Audrey Demicoli upheld the arrest for reasons quoted by the prosecution and the accused was remanded in custody.