A Bugibba restaurateur failed to confirm to police that police informant PC99 Mario Portelli and David Gatt, the alleged leader of a criminal gang, had dined at his restaurant.
The claim had been made by Portelli, who also said that Gatt had kissed the hand of restaurateur Raymond Abela and spoke to him in Italian. He had also alleged that Gatt, a lawyer and former police inspector, was involved in the murder of Renzo Borg because of a drug deal which went wrong and that Abela was involved.
During the continuation of the compilation of evidence against Dr Gatt this morning, Police Inspector Chris Pullicino read a statement given to the police by Mr Abela.
He said the restaurateur could not confirm that David Gatt had gone to his restaurant to dine with PC99.
He denied kissing Gatt's hand or having spoken to him in Italian, as Psaila had claimed.
The inspector said the police had found that Abela had deleted Gatt's telephone number from his mobile phone.
What asked about it, Abela said he had known Gatt for a long time, since they were children, but he deleted his name after he was taken to court.
In testimony last month, Mr Abela flatly denied involvement in drugs.
Dr Gatt is accused, among other things, in involvement in the attempted hold-up of the HSBC headquarters in June 2010 and the hold-up on a jeweller in Attard in November of the same year, both of which were foiled.
Abela had described PC99 as “a liar from A to Z”.