Nikki Dimech appeals

Former Sliema mayor Nikki Dimech this morning filed an appeal arguing that the judgment which had found him guilty of attempted bribery and sentenced to a one-year jail term was null because it was not handed down according to law. Quoting case law, Mr Dimech said that when an accused was found guilty, the judgment should state what he was found guilty of and when handing down punishment the magistrate should list the relevant articles of the which contemplated that crime. The magistrate, he said, had given an incomplete interpretation of the law because a number of essential elements did not result from the evidence presented. This amounted to a miscarriage of justice and a one-year prison term was exaggerated. He asked for the judgment to be overturned. Lawyer Roberto Montalto signed the appeal.