Former GRTU chief Vince Farrugia. Photo: Jason Borg

A magistrate yesterday ordered the police to charge former GRTU chief Vince Farrugia with perjury and subornation of witnesses during the criminal case against developer Sandro Chetcuti.

Magistrate Aaron Bugeja found there was enough prima facie evidence for the criminal case against Mr Farrugia to start, noting how he had tried influencing witnesses after he had been assaulted by Mr Chetcuti.

“The court is convinced that not only did Mr Farrugia influence witnesses on how and what to testify but in his own testimony gave a distorted picture of the facts, making the incident look more brutal than it actually was,” the magistrate said.

In a long judgment that took almost two hours to read, Magistrate Bugeja upheld an application by Mr Chetcuti for what is known in legal jargon as a ‘challenge to the Police Commissioner’, ordering the police to arraign Mr Farrugia.

In September 2013, Mr Chetcuti was convicted of having slightly injured Mr Farrugia, former director general of the Chamber for Small and Medium Enterprises – the GRTU – at its Valletta offices in March 2010.

He had been sentenced to one month in prison suspended for one year.

Mr Chetcuti had originally been accused of Mr Farrugia’s attempted murder but the prosecution had dropped the charge, leaving assault with intent to cause serious injury as the most serious charge.

His own testimony gave a distorted picture of the facts, making the incident look more brutal than it actually was

In that case, the court, presided over by then Magistrate, now Madam Justice, Edwina Grima, also ordered the Police Commissioner to investigate Mr Farrugia and other witnesses who could have committed perjury. An investigation was carried out, but when no action was taken Mr Chetcuti proceeded to file the challenge.

In its judgment, the court noted that, even before proceedings had started, Mr Farrugia had tried to use his influential position to ensure that Mr Chetcuti faced a trial by the media. SMS messages and other exchanges showed he had contacted journalists and even vetted articles and comments in the press.

Magistrate Bugeja referred to the SMS messages, quoting some of them to show how Mr Farrugia had tried to influence witnesses regarding what they told the police. In at least one SMS, he reminded the recipient, who would later testify, to remember to say that he heard Mr Chetcuti telling Mr Farrugia “Noqtlok, noqtlok” (“I’ll kill you”).

Another text message, quoted by the magistrate and sent by Mr Farrugia to a witness read: “We must blacken his name with all ministers and Parl Secs, MPs and authorities so nobody trusts him and nobody touches him. He’s a leper. We must hit him from all angles, no mercy.”

He told yet another witness: “... remember when you came in you saw him looking vicious and almost ready to butt my head with his. Your eye message which I read was ‘watch it’ and your eyes showed terror. That’s what I’ll say. And as he hit me you heard him say repeatedly ‘Noqtlok, noqtlok.’ That’s the truth. I wake up in the night hearing those words in his hoarse voice loud in my ears. We must all hammer this point.”

Based on such prima facie evidence supporting the claim of perjury, the magistrate upheld Mr Chetcuti’s request and also ordered the Police Commissioner to investigate other witnesses in the criminal case against Mr Chetcuti who could have committed perjury by lying or else telling only part of the truth.

Lawyers Edward Gatt and William Cuschieri appeared for Mr Chetcuti.