A man who tried to stop a fight between drinking mates was stabbed repeatedly and had to be taken to hospital, a police inspector told a court yesterday.

Inspector David Saliba told Magistrate Tonio Micallef Trigona he got most of the story from Stephen Falzon, the man involved in the argument with defendant Marco Vella near the square in Balzan.

He testified in the compilation of evidence against Vella, 35, of Mosta, who is pleading not guilty to the attempted murder of Raymond Farrugia in Balzan on August 16 at about 1 a.m.

He was also charged with permanently scarring Farrugia, keeping and carrying a knife without a licence, breaching the peace, beaching the conditions of a probation order and relapsing.

Inspector Saliba told how he questioned Falzon who told him he had spent some time drinking with Vella and they had argued about some trivial matters.

Falzon said he told Vella he had a message for him from a certain Gordon who ran a bar and who wanted Vella told he was no longer welcome at his bar because Vella seemed to expect drinks for free.

The argument stopped there but another one started soon after when Vella accused the barman of taking his drink. This second argument also ended after a while.

Vella and Falzon left the bar at closing time but another argument flared up outside in the square because Vella took umbrage at Falzon warning him off Gordon's bar.

When the fight seemed to be getting out of hand, Farrugia intervened and physically separated the two by moving in between them and holding them apart at arm's length.

But Vella fell on the ground and eventually got up and stabbed him repeatedly with a knife.

Inspector Saliba said he eventually spoke to Vella who told him he could not remember anything and gave him the impression it was because he had been drunk.

But he persisted and Vella eventually admitted that he had been drinking at the MLP club in Balzan and that he always carried a small pen-knife on a key chain and that he did not have it any more but could not remember whether he had thrown it away or whether he had lost it.

He also said Farrugia and Vella had rounded up on him and had punched him and hit him with a crash helmet.

The case continues.