Eyewitness testifies in murder case

A murder witness yesterday told a magistrate how he recognised the man who shot his colleague 14 years ago to be Melchior Spiteri.

"I'll never forget the face of the person as it remained imprinted in my mind," Italian national Marco Russo said as he pointed at Mr Spiteri in the dock.

Mr Russo was testifying before Magistrate Miriam Hayman in the compilation of evidence against Mr Spiteri, 31, who is pleading not guilty to the murder of Vittorio Cassone at about 6.30 p.m. on January 13, 1993, at Chef D'Italy, in Birkirkara Road, St Julians.

Mr Russo explained how on the day of the incident he was in the kitchen of Chef D'Italy, where he worked. After some time he heard his colleague, Mr Cassone, call out and when he (the witness) walked out of the kitchen he saw a hooded man point a pistol at Mr Cassone. There was also a woman, a regular client, in the room.

"I froze in the doorway when I saw Vittorio Cassone and in front of him a man with a stocking over his head and a pistol in his hand. He started pointing the gun at Vittorio and at me," he said, explaining that he could see the man's face through the nylon stocking.

The witness added that the hooded man then said something he did not comprehend as he did not understand Maltese well at the time. He assumed however that the intruder had asked for money.

Mr Russo called for the owner's son who tried to open the cash register but this would not open. Mr Cassone remained immobile.

"The person with the gun panicked and fired a shot. I too panicked and ran into the kitchen where I remained until I felt it was safe to emerge. When I went back out I found Vittorio Cassone on the floor," Mr Russo recalled. Following the incident, the police called him to their headquarters where he was asked to identify the perpetrator in a series of identification parades.

He explained how he recognised the man who shot his colleague in several line-ups but told the police he was 99 per cent sure, as opposed to 100 per cent, because he was scared at the time.

The police never spoke to him again until, recently, 13 years after the incident. Now a grown-up man he decided that, although he was still scared, he would tell the truth and identified the man who shot Mr Cassone.

That man, he said, was Mr Spiteri.

Police Inspector Chris Pullicino is prosecuting.

Lawyer Franco Debono is defence counsel.