Update 3: Accused says he stabbed victim because he thought he was being attacked

A man allegedly stabbed and almost killed another man in an incident which started when a car hit the door mirror of another car during overtaking, a court was told this morning,

The evidence was given as Stephen Pirotta, 39 of Luqa went on trial accused of the attempted murder of David Azzopardi, 42, of Cospicua in September 2005.

He is alleged to have stabbed Azzopardi in Mdina Road, Qormi, on Septemer 28, 2005. Azzopardi had been in danger of dying but managed to recover.

UNPROVOKED ATTACK

Nadine Sant, for the prosecution, told the court that this had been a ferocious attack which took place in front of the girlfriend of the accused.

She said Azzopardi had protested with the accused for having hit his car mirror, and the accused stabbed him.

“The knife went so deep into his chest it almost came out of his back.”

She said the accused got the knife from his car without provocation and as his girlfriend screaming for him to let go.

“He did not get the knife to defend himself. He did not just happen to grab it, he did it to specifically to stab the victim,” Dr Sant said.

Taking the witness stand, Police Inspector Jesmond Borg said that the victim, despte his injury, had managed to drive to High Street, Hamrun, where his car crashed at slow speed into a pole. People opened the car door and he fell out, covered in blood. There was also blood on the floor of the car and the seat.

An ambulance was called and he was rushed to hospital.

His girlfriend Lorraine Zarb told the police that while they were driving at Mdina Road, Qormi, a white Skoda car came up behind them and began hooting. It then overtook them, broke their door mirror and kept going, with the driver hurling abuse.

They followed the Skoda, which then blocked their way. As her boyfriend protested over the broken mirror the accused got out, then and then fetched a knife from inside the car.

The two started arguing and then her boyfriend David Azzopardi was stabbed. He got into the car and began driving towards St Luke’s Hospital. He lost consciousness in Hamrun because of blood loss.

He was operated on as soon as the ambulance took him to hospital.

He would have died within an hour had he not made it to the operating table.

ACCUSED THOUGHT HE WAS ABOUT TO BE ATTACKED

In a police statement read to the court, the accused, Stephen Pirotta, a father of four, told the police that he was going through a separation after finding his wife with a friend of his.

He had been drinking more than usual because of his problems. On the day of the incident he I drank four beers and a bottle of wine, but such drinking did not affect him.

As he was driving in Qormi, he started hooting for Azzopardi to move over and he overtook him near a petrol station.Azzopardi followed him.

When they stopped, he saw that the mirror was not broken. He said he saw Azzopardi crouching down and he thought he was going to get something to attack him with, so he got the knife to protect himself.

He hit him with the knife, and immediately realised he had done something wrong. He dropped the knife, went home and fell asleep.

Mr Pirotta said he had stabbed Azzopardi because he was scared and thought he was being attacked. He had thought he had a pistol and was about to produce it.