The alleged victim of an attempted murder yesterday said he did not hear or see his aggressor fire a gun but only saw him aim it in his direction.

"I didn't hear anything and I didn't see any smoke or fire come out of the gun," Saviour Mangion said.

Mr Mangion was giving evidence in a trial by bench of Anton Camilleri, 44, who is pleading not guilty to trying to kill him on May 9, 2004. Mr Camilleri is also denying possession of a shotgun.

Mr Mangion told the court, presided over by Mr Justice Michael Mallia, that Mr Camilleri pointed a gun at him during an argument that broke out on Mother's Day outside Mr Camilleri's house in Madliena at around 10 a.m.

Three hours earlier, at around 7 a.m., he had called Mr Camilleri to return some papers that he had given him a few weeks earlier.

He said these papers included a copy of a promise-of-sale agreement related to a garage that belonged to Mr Camilleri and a document, signed only by Mr Mangion, which stated he was going to pay Mr Camilleri a further sum for another garage.

Accompanied by his wife Giovanna, Mr Mangion turned up at Mr Camilleri's house but he was not there and they decided to wait for him. When Mr Camilleri arrived, Mrs Mangion got out of the car to speak to him first but Mr Mangion followed soon after.

"He lifted a fist - my wife came between us and he punched me and was about to do it again. As soon as he drew back his fist, I hit him back. He got angry and went to his car," Mr Mangion said.

He said he saw Mr Camilleri take a black triangular pocket out of the car and pull out a weapon. "I froze. He aimed it in my direction. He pointed it at me and I froze," Mr Mangion said.

Mr Camilleri's wife was screaming in the background and tried to stop her husband but he pushed her away, he added.

He admitted, however, that he had no recollection of hearing any sound or seeing any spark or smoke from the gun, especially because he was deaf in one ear.

But his wife, Giovanna, testified that she saw Mr Camilleri fire the weapon because she heard a small pop and saw whitish smoke. "I also saw something small roll off his hand."

Mrs Mangion said she was shocked at what happened and insisted that Mrs Camilleri saved her husband's life when she pushed Mr Camilleri just as he fired.

They ran to the car and escaped, she added.

In his testimony, Superintendent Silvio Valletta said no trace of gunshot residue - a fine powder invisible to the eye that is discharged when a weapon is fired - was found on Mr Camilleri.

Mr Camilleri had willingly accepted to do the tests and had told the police to do all the tests they wanted to because he had not shot anyone, Supt Valletta said.

Supt Valletta said Mr Camilleri denied taking a weapon from his car but was going to get his diary and keys. "If I wanted to kill him I would have gone in my house to fetch my shotgun," he had told the police.

Mr Camilleri told the police that his house had been broken into and he bought a shotgun to defend himself. This gun, which was the only weapon found by the police, was kept loaded on top of a wardrobe in his child's bedroom. However, he had not loaded it himself because he did not know how to.

He only defended himself against Mr Mangion, who was about to hit him. "I never fired," he told police.

When interrogated by defence counsel Giannella Caruana Curran, Supt. Valletta admitted that only Mrs Mangion heard a shot and saw something being ejected from the weapon.

Lawyers Jason Grima and Maurizio Cordina from the Attorney General's office prosecuted. Dr Caruana Curran, Dr Joe Giglio and Dr Stephen Tonna Lowell appeared for Mr Camilleri.