[attach id=437956 size="medium"]Jean Paul Aquilina, the driver who claims he was beaten up by police officers. He is pleading not guilty to assaulting police. resisting arrest.[/attach]
The two police officers who are alleged to have “brutally attacked” a driver in Mġarr are to be charged with causing slight bodily harm.
Rapid Intervention Unit police officers David Camilleri and Mark Tonna will be charged in court next month with slightly injuring Jean Paul Aquilina, 24, who claims he was attacked and beaten when they stopped him at around 1am on May 3.
They will also be charged with committing a crime they were duty bound to prevent.
The charges follow an internal police investigation that was ordered by the court.
The cases against the two officers were meant to start yesterday morning before Magistrate Carol Peralta but he postponed them to later this month after being informed about them at the last minute.
The decision was taken by Magistrate Peralta as he presided over the compilation of evidence against the driver, Mr Aquilina, 24, of Mosta, who is charged with dangerous driving, assaulting police officers, resisting arrest and disobeying their orders. He pleaded not guilty.
Police Sergeant David Cina, from the Mosta police station, testified that he was called to the scene and arrived there at around 1.30am. He found around eight RIU officers as well as civilians who he felt were “angry”.
“They [the people] were saying ‘look what they did to him’,” he testified.
A woman, Josianne Vassallo, was sobbing and told Mr Cina, “sergeant, they beat him up for nothing”.
The sergeant said he walked up to Mr Aquilina, who was standing handcuffed between two police officers, and asked him what had happened and how he was feeling. Half his face was red and there was a mark under his eye.
Mr Aquilina started crying and told Mr Cina: “They beat me up…look what they did to me.” The sergeant then asked everyone to go to the Mosta police station.
Mr Cina ordered Mr Aquilina to be taken to the health centre in a police car from the Mosta police station and Ms Vassallo insisted on getting in the car with him as she “was worried”. However, Mr Cina said this did not happen.
When asked by Mr Aquilina’s defence lawyer, Mario de Marco, whether his client was sober, Mr Cina said he was “100 per cent steady” on his feet. He did not smell of alcohol nor appear intoxicated in anyway, he added.
Ms Vassallo said “the young one beat him up”. When asked by Dr de Marco whether she was referring to Mr Camilleri, Mr Cina said yes.
Family members turned up at the police station and Mr Cina felt they were asking for justice. They did not act in a threatening or aggressive way but looked shocked at what had happened, he said.