Lawyer explains land use dispute that led to shooting

Lawyer Patrick Spiteri yesterday told a court he allowed John Pace to use a plot of land he had been renting from Cikku Fenech but denied charging Pace rent.

Dr Spiteri explained he had rented the land from Fenech on his company's name and in 2000 he allowed Pace, who worked for him occasionally, the temporary free use of the land because he had nowhere else to keep his horse.

But when Dr Spiteri stopped paying Fenech the rent and warned Pace he would have to leave, Pace refused to leave before he was paid for the cost of building three rooms on the land.

Dr Spiteri testified before Magistrate Tonio Micallef Trigona in the compilation of evidence against Pace, 38, of Birkirkara who is pleading not guilty to trying to kill Fenech by firing at him on May 11 at about 2.30 p.m.

He is also pleading not guilty to three counts of the illegal possession of a firearm, breaching the peace, trespassing and relapsing.

Dr Spiteri explained that Pace told him he was unemployed so he employed him to run occasional errands at his law firm.

In autumn 2000 Pace told him he had a horse but did not have a place to keep it or the means to provide one. So Dr Spiteri allowed Pace the free use of the plot he was renting from Fenech.

Dr Spiteri said a couple of months later Fenech informed him that Pace had built three rooms on Fenech's land when the agreement was that the land could only be used to keep animals.

The lawyer went on to explain that Pace told him he had built the rooms so that the horse would have a shelter in winter.

He said that in January 2002 he warned Pace he was not going to continue paying the rent and therefore Pace was to look for another place to keep his horse.

Dr Spiteri explained, although he extended the lease by another six months that expired on September 28, 2002, he did not intend to extend it further.

When he informed Fenech he was not going to extend the lease Fenech told him that for him the most important thing was that Pace left and, Dr Spiteri added, Fenech was not interested in leasing the land to Pace.

Meanwhile, Dr Spiteri explained he was arrested and a few days after being released Fenech went to his house and told him that Pace told him that he (Pace) had paid Dr Spiteri rent to use the land.

Dr Spiteri and Fenech then went to visit Pace who admitted not having paid Dr Spiteri for the land. Pace however said he would only leave once he was paid for the expenses incurred in building the rooms.

Then, the lawyer said, on the day before the alleged incident Pace told Dr Spiteri he was willing to leave for Lm500 but that afternoon he called him to tell him he had changed his mind and he would sort the matter out with Fenech.

On the Sunday evening Dr Spiteri heard about the shooting incident on the news.

Answering a question by the prosecution Dr Spiteri denied ever borrowing money from Pace.

Dr Pierre Lofaro and Dr Joseph Giglio for Pace then made a request for bail and called Pace's wife, Pauline, to the witness stand to testify.

She said that Dr Spiteri had taken Lm15,000 from them and now they had only Lm3,000.

The lawyers argued that although, for the sake of fairness, Pace was to be granted bail on conditions similar to those imposed on Fenech, that is a Lm5,000 deposit and a personal guarantee of Lm10,000, Pauline Borg's testimony showed that Borg was not in a position to pay a Lm5,000 deposit.

At the end of yesterday's sitting Magistrate Micallef Trigona granted Pace bail against a Lm3,000 deposit and a personal guarantee of Lm10,000.

The case continues.

Inspectors Geoffrey Azzopardi and Pio Pisani are prosecuting.