A motorist who claimed excessive use of force by two policemen who stopped him for alleged dangerous driving on the Mġarr Bypass in May has been cleared of all the charges brought against him after a court found no evidence of wrongdoing.
Jean Paul Aquilina, 24, from Mosta, had also been accused of failing to obey police orders, giving them false particulars, assaulting the police officers, driving under the influence of drink, using his mobile phone while driving and not wearing a seatbelt.
But Magistrate Carol Peralta found that none of the evidence presented in court was enough to prove any of the charges and that the reasonable doubt that remained had to – by law – to favour the defendant.
One of the reasons on which Magistrate Peralta based his conclusion was the testimony of one of the two policemen involved in the case – David Camilleri – as well as the testimony of Mr Aquilina’s girlfriend, Jasione Vassallo, who said she saw her partner being beaten up by the police.
The allegations of excessive use of force had emerged when Mr Aquilina was first arraigned in court. He claimed Mr Camilleri and RIU officer Mark Tonna threw him to the ground, forcefully restrained him and also punched him in the face, while arresting him for dangerous driving.
Throughout Mr Aquilina’s case, the court heard how the driver was pulled over by the police at 1am near Mgarr. Mr Aquilina got out of his car and cooperated with the two officers, however, an altercation ensued between the three after Mr Aquilina initially provided incorrect ID card details.
On this, Magistrate Peralta said that the notes on the officers’ notebook showed that the numbers were correct or had some digits missing. This could have been a misunderstanding and not necessarily because Mr Aquilina had given the wrong details, the magistrate said.
The magistrate also found it difficult to believe PC Camilleri’s version that Mr Aquilina “threw himself onto the cars” during the scuffle, in his attempt to explain how Mr Aquilina had sustained injuries to his face.
Magistrate Peralta further commented on the claim that PC Camilleri’s RIU uniform was torn during the altercation when witnesses who testified in the case, including two police officers, said they never saw the top torn but only “stretched”.
On the drink driving charge, Magistrate Peralta noted that no breathalyser test had been taken because a senior policeman said he had no reasonable suspicion according to law to demand a test.
PC Camilleri’s assertion that Mr Aquilina was red in the face and had bloodshot eyes was not corroborated by any witnesses, leaving the court with a lurking doubt, the magistrate said.
As a result of these doubts, he ruled that the police had failed to prove their case beyond reasonable doubt and cleared Mr Aquilina of all the charges brought against him.
When the judgment was read out in a packed courtroom, Mr Aquilina seemed lost and did not seem to be understanding what was happening. He, however, contained his happiness when his defence lawyer, Mario de Marco, informed him that he had been cleared of all charges.
The separate case against PCs Camilleri and Tonna continues before Magistrate Peralta next month.
Police Inspector Nicholas Vella prosecuted.