Inmate Sylvester James, aka il-Bomba, who is a witness in a case involving another inmate today was fined €100 by a magistrate for contempt of court after he told the magistrate and the prosecution: “Who the hell do you think you all are?”, using insulting words in Maltese.

Mr James was testifying in a case involving Jason Decelis, who is serving a 25-year-jail term over the murder by omission of 18-year-old Rachel Bowdler, and who now stands accused of attacking and resisting prison warders and making a false claim.

Testifying, Mr James said that he had never seen the prison warder attack Mr Decelis is claiming to have happened. All he heard the prison warder say is for Mr Decelis to use another bathroom as the one he wanted to use is for prison officers only.

But things took a different turn after the witness accused the prosecution of trying to confuse him with the questions they were asking, stating that he would not fall for their antics.

When the prosecution team tried to explain to him that they were only trying to establish what had happened, the prisoner told the prosecution: “Who the hell do you think you are?", using insulting adjectives in Maltese.

When Magistrate Aaron Bugeja attempted to calm the witness down, the prisoner reacted once again by telling the magistrate the same words he told the prosecution. This led the magistrate to warn him that he would fine him for disrespecting the courts. Mr James told the magistrate: “You can do what the hell you want but I won’t pay a cent and I will serve my fine in jail.” He sarcastically told the magistrate: "Do you accept cheque or do you prefer cash?"

When Mr James persisted with his rant, the magistrate fined him €50.

The magistrate warned the witness that he was addressing a magistrate which saw Mr James retaliate once again by saying “and I am il-Bomba”. The magistrate fined him an additional €50 after he asked the police to escort him out of the courtroom.

Criminal action against Mr Decelis had began after a magisterial inquiry concluded that his allegations that a correctional officer had ordered him to urinate on his cell’s floor instead of using the toilet in an act of “bullying” were false.

Police Inspector Spiridione Zammit prosecuted.