Victim's girlfriend testifies

Jurors in a murder trial yesterday heard the victim's girlfriend recount how she saw him fall to the ground and explain how the last thing he told her was to get into the car with their son.

Josianne Farrugia explained how, when the fight broke out outside Bamboo Bar in Paceville, she went outside to check on her baby son, who was in a car with her 12-year-old sister.

"I went next to the car and then saw Brian (Tabone, the victim) sway, I held his hand and asked him what was wrong... When I looked down I saw everything hang out of his stomach above his belly button and I started screaming.

"He started falling towards the ground. People started pulling me away from him. I shouted 'Bri, get up, get up'... The last thing he told me was to get in the car with our son," Farrugia said, crying.

Farrugia was testifying before Mr Justice Joseph Galea Debono in the trial by jury of Glen Pullicino, 17, of Zebbug, who is pleading not guilty to the murder of 23-year-old Brian Tabone outside Bamboo Bar in Paceville on March 17, 2002, at about 5.45 p.m.

She said that on the day of the incident she was on her way to Cirkewwa with her parents, her younger brother and sister, Tabone and their son, when her other brother Jonathan called Tabone on his mobile and asked him to join him at Bamboo Bar.

They decided to go and when they arrived in Paceville they parked outside the bar. Her 12-year-old sister remained in the car with her younger brother and her baby son. She left her mobile phone with her sister so that she could phone if the baby cried.

While they were inside a fight broke out, the bouncers kicked some people out of the bar but the fight went on outside.

"Brian went outside to check on the children and my father told him to come back inside since the car was insured but Brian signalled that there were the children inside the car and remained outside.

"My father went outside and asked the people near the car to move away from it and at that point someone hit my father with a bottle."

She explained how a fight, involving a lot of people, broke out and Tabone was part of it.

Once Farrugia stepped off the witness stand Assistant Attorney General Anthony Barbara, prosecuting, declared he had no more evidence and requested an onsite inquiry.

During the inquiry, held outside Bamboo Bar at 3.30 p.m., jurors heard several witnesses explain the dynamics of the events.

The trial continues this morning.

Assistant Attorney General Anthony Barbara is prosecuting.

Dr Giannella Caruana Curran, Dr Emanuel Mallia, Dr Michael Sciriha and Dr John Attard Montalto are appearing for Pullicino.