Jailed three years for hitting uncle with a hammer

A man who hit his sleeping uncle with a hammer was this morning jailed for three years after a court heard how he had admitted his crime to the police, claiming he was 'in a trance' at the time.

David Zammit Gauci, 44, of Sliema, was convicted of grievously injuring his uncle Michael Zammit Gauci as he was asleep. The victim suffered a permanent  injury to the head and lacerations. 

The accused in his statement to the police said he had stopped hitting his uncle with a hammer only when the handle broke and then he started punching him but stopped when he 'came to his senses'.

He hid the hammer and blood-stained items in the garden before phoning his father and calling for help.

The court was also told that the accused had suffered depression.

In a chilling account in June - two weeks after the incident happened - the victim said that as he lay on the floor, he told his nephew to call his father and an ambulance, which he did. The victim added that he had since forgiven his nephew for the attack.

The prosecuting officer said that when he had questioned the accused, the latter was very agitated, crying and holding his face in his hands.