Colleague 'went under water several times'

A soldier yesterday recounted how during a training exercise which claimed the life of a colleague she struggled with the exercise and went under several times in the ice cold water.

Gunner Lindsay Borg Magro took the witness stand in proceedings against Lieutenant Christian Vella and Lance Bombardier Marvic Peregin, who stand charged with the involuntary homicide of Gunner Matthew Psaila through negligence at Chadwick Lakes earlier this year.

Midway under the bridge, Gunner Psaila went missing but it was only after a head count was made that his colleagues realised he was still under water.

He was pulled unconscious from the murky lake and they started to perform CPR on him. He coughed up some water but remained in a coma for two days before he died.

A report by a retired judge had said nobody was to blame for the death and highlighted the fact that the young gunner could not swim well.

But Gunner Borg Magro said yesterday both she and other colleagues struggled heavily with the exercise despite being able to swim.

She remembered the water being icy cold and the exercise entailed her group, unit one, carrying a log under a bridge.

She said that because of the weight of her equipment she went under the water several times and was finding it hard to stay afloat.

She said that when they reached the bridge, a colleague, Gunner Darren Galea, started to panic and also went under several times.

At one point they both went under at the same time. In a panic, Gunner Galea was actually dragging her down as he tried to stay afloat.

He was waving his hands around, she said, adding that after Lance Bombardier Peregin noticed her struggling, he grabbed hold of her, pulled her to the bank and pulled her out.

Police Inspector Robert Vella prosecuted. Lawyers Joseph Giglio and Gianella Caruana Curran appeared for the accused. Lawyers Michael Tanti-Dougall, Emmanuel Mallia and Arthur Azzopardi appeared parte civile.