Young man charged with Paceville attempted murders

A 22-year-old carpenter from Qormi was yesterday remanded in custody after he was charged with trying to kill two people and seriously injuring a third.

Anthony Bartolo was charged with trying to kill Darryl Luke Borg and Clint Mangion, both from Birkirkara, by stabbing them in the neck at Paceville at 10 p.m. last Sunday.

He was further charged with grievously injuring Pierre Grech by stabbing him in his right arm.

Bartolo was further charged with being in possession of a pen knife while he was committing a crime against others and with carrying the knife without a licence from the police.

Inspectors Carmelo Magri and Geoffrey Azzopardi, who prosecuted, opposed a request for bail and said the victims were still in hospital and investigations were continuing.

The accused's brother and a friend of his, who were both potential witnesses, lived in the same house as the accused, or practically next door, so not even house arrest would guarantee that evidence would not be tampered with.

Asked by the court to justify the arrest, Insp. Magri said that apart from the gravity of the case, the accused had admitted with the police and there were reliable third parties who had spoken to the police about the case.

Dr Robert Abela, who appeared for the accused, argued that his client had a clean criminal record and as the case evolved, it would be clear that this was a case of self defence, even if one could argue there was an excess of self defence. But his client was unlikely to be sent to prison, even if found guilty, Dr Abela argued.

Magistrate Lawrence Quintano decreed that after considering the type of the crime and the proximity of witnesses to the accused, he could not uphold the request for bail at this stage.