A taxi driver has been given a two-year prison sentence suspended for four years after being found guilty of causing the death of a teenage pedestrian in 2017.

Luciano Tabone was convicted over the death of 19-year-old Romanian national Loredana Nemes, who was struck by his vehicle in the Regional Road tunnel at around 4.30am on July 12, 2017. Tabone had been charged with causing her death as well as driving in a negligent, reckless and dangerous manner, including speeding.

During the proceedings, the victim's boyfriend, Luciano Agostino, a Brazilian national living in Rome, testified that he and Nemes had gone out together the night before the incident to meet his brother. After eating and going for drinks, they returned home on foot at around 2am, where an argument ensued. Agostino said he packed his belongings and left to walk to Paceville to stay with his brother, who was holidaying in Malta.

Agostino told the court that he was unaware Nemes had followed him. While walking through the tunnel, he heard an impact and then saw Nemes in the middle of the road before she was thrown by the force of the collision.

A court-appointed expert reported that Tabone stopped 42.7 metres from the point of impact. While acknowledging possible contributory negligence on the victim's part, given that the driver would not have expected a pedestrian to be standing in the middle of the tunnel, the expert concluded that Tabone had failed to keep a proper lookout. The tunnel was found to be adequately lit at the time of the incident.

The expert further determined that Tabone was driving with defective brakes and at an excessive speed estimated between 82 and 105 kilometres per hour. The report stated that had the driver been travelling at a lower speed and exercised greater caution, he would likely have seen the pedestrian in time to avoid the collision.

The court noted that Nemes had a high level of alcohol in her system, which may have contributed to a lack of attention while crossing the road in an area without a pedestrian crossing. This was considered an element of contributory negligence.

In its ruling, the court sentenced Tabone to two years' imprisonment, suspended for four years. He was also disqualified from holding a driving licence for one year and ordered to pay €3,051 in court expenses.

The judgment was delivered on December 4 by Magistrate Astrid May Grima.