Two managers of a gentlemen's club have been acquitted of all charges linking them to an assault on a Frenchman following an argument in the club in October 2013.

Brothers Donald and Marco Bonnici were accused of having grievously injured Steve Lefevre, with having breached public peace and with having employed unlicensed security personnel.

The police had reported that when they arrived on the scene they were met by the Frenchman, who was highly agitated and who claimed to have been badly beaten up, singling out Donald Bonnici as one of his aggressors. 

The victim, a casino supervisor on board a cruise liner berthed at the Grand Harbour on a one night stop, had spent the night out in Paceville, the court heard. 

He got into a tussle with security personnel at the Deja'Vu club after having paid for a private pole or lap dancing session and was left high and dry by the girls who allegedly deducted some €400 from his credit card. 

The court, presided by Magistrate Consuelo Scerri Herrera, noted that there was no doubt that the victim had suffered grievous injuries which resulted in a permanent disability as certified by an ENT specialist. 

The two bouncers involved in the fight had also been charged and had actually registered an admission, the court observed. Both had declared that no third parties were involved in the aggression and that Donald Bonnici had merely stepped in to break up the fight. 

The court noted that CCTV footage actually proved this and corroborated the testimony of the co-accused. Still images showed the Frenchman aiming a bucket of water at one of the co-accused whilst shouting "I kill you." 

Donald Bonnici had tried to drag the victim away from his aggressors, the court observed.

Police and medical personnel testified that the victim was smelling of alcohol and was rather aggressive. The court noted that the police had struggled to calm him down. The man had also made life difficult for the nurses who tried to coax him into the ambulance. 

When testifying in court, the victim had not recognized the co-accused as his aggressors.  

Inspector Daryl Borg prosecuted.

Lawyer Kathleen Grima was defence counsel for both accused.