Migrants charged over reception center fire in Malta

Four detainees at a migrant reception center in Marsa, Malta, have pleaded guilty to taking part in a riot, which saw part of the facility set ablaze.

The four were part of a group of 20 African migrants, who were arraigned before a magistrate on Friday afternoon. The remaining 16 all pleaded not guilty. This latter group included four men charged with starting the fire that gutted a dormitory.

Five of the detainees charged on Friday are under 18 years of age. The youngest is 15.

Police investigations had established that a number of migrants residing at the Marsa center, which houses over 400 migrants, had started rioting in the main dormitory on Jan. 8, setting off a fire that engulfed the room just a few moments later. Other rooms were also damaged.

Eleven center workers and three migrants had to be treated for smoke inhalation.

The accused men are irregular immigrants from Guinea, Somalia, Cote d'Ivoire, Mali, Nigeria, Gambia, South Sudan, Senegal and Bangladesh.

The court was told that the riot broke out after the men had demanded to be released and were refused.

The riot came just days after another 22 men were charged with rioting at another internment camp at Safi on Monday. That group all pleaded not guilty.