A couple’s argument over child maintenance payments sparked off a full-scale punch-up between rival Cospicua families on Easter Sunday afternoon, a court heard on Monday.
The dynamics of the violent episode emerged as a young mother-of-two, in an on-again-off-again relationship with one of the men injured in the fight, provided a witness's account of the events of that afternoon.
Carmelo Dalli, 59, Fredrick Dalli, 36, Charlston Cassar, 26, Lee Julian Cassar, 25, Josloann Cassar, 25, Redent Cassar, 24, Tristan Cassar, 22 and Kurt David Azzopardi, 18, all stand accused of having breached public peace, threatened and assaulted members of the Brincat family between 2.45pm and 4pm on Easter Sunday.
Two of their alleged victims were grievously hurt in the assault, with two others ending up slightly injured.
An eyewitness testified how she and a female friend had gone for a drink at a Cospicua kiosk close to 2pm on the afternoon of the incident.
Her partner, father of her two children, had been there too, together with his brother, sister-in-law and cousin.
Sipping her first drink while chatting to her friend, the woman recalled how her attention had suddenly been caught by a commotion a short distance away. A fight appeared to have broken out between a number of individuals, stemming from an ongoing dispute regarding maintenance payments.
Urged partner to keep out of fight
Spotting her partner making his way towards the scene of the commotion, the witness described how she had run across, urging him to keep out of the fight and recalling having caught sight of a horsewhip in his hand.
The man had apparently armed himself to defend himself and his cousins against the hostile gathering, the witness said, adding that she had tried to calm down her partner before a plump man, identified in court as Frederick Dalli, one of the co-accused, had allegedly gone up to him stating, “Why did you touch my son?”
The two allegedly come to blows and in the “total confusion” that followed the witness caught sight of her partner being assaulted by another man who held a knife to his neck.
The woman also described how she had suffered leg injuries as the knife was wrestled out of the other man’s grip. However, the witness could not tell who had actually caused her the injury which had required treatment at a health centre.
Carmelo Dalli, Josloann Cassar, Tristan Cassar and Kurt David Azzopardi had been granted bail upon their arraignment against a personal guarantee of €5,000.
The other four co-accused were granted bail in a later hearing after a number of civilian witnesses, including the alleged victims, had testified.
Bail was granted against a deposit of €5,000 and a personal guarantee of €10,000.
The case continues.
Lawyers Franco Debono, Arthur Azzopardi, Amadeus Cachia, Marion Camilleri and Mario Mifsud are defence counsel.