A family-run transport company lost its licence after the owner admitted to employing a driver whose name was on the sex offenders’ list.

Renè Zammit, 47, of Balzan, who runs the Silverstar Transport Services Limited, was also fined €15,000 and had all his licences revoked after he employed sex offender John Vella.

Mr Vella’s name was included on the sex offenders’ register last March when he was convicted of defiling children.

Mr Vella, 66, from Birkirkara, was fined €3,000 and had a two-year suspended jail term extended by a further four years after he admitted to breaching the conditions of a court judgment handed down in March.

One of the conditions of his suspended jail term was that he could not be employed in a job that took him into direct contact with children.

The police began investigating the case when Mr Vella was spotted driving Silverstar’s minibuses transporting children.

The police approached him and took his driver’s tag. They also went to Mr Zammit to inform him that Mr Vella could not be allowed to transport children or minors, because he was officially listed as a sex offender

However, Mr Zammit still sent Mr Vella on a school trip the following morning, on 31 May. He was stopped by traffic police at 7.30am in Msida.

Mr Zammit and Mr Vella pleaded guilty to all the charges brought against them. In handing down judgment, magistrate Donatella Frendo Dimech noted that neither of the two had learnt from their mistakes. Mr Vella committed an offence just five months after having been given another chance, while Mr Zammit breached the law again just four months after he had been found guilty in a different case.

Mr Zammit had been in and out of court in connection with offences related to the transport industry since 2005, the court noted.

Police Inspector Sergio Pisani acted for the prosecution.