Irina Alexandrovna and David Abela.

CCTV footage shows a man breaking into the home of David Abela before the Swieqi businessman was murdered early on Monday morning, Times of Malta is informed.

The aggressor is believed to have broken into his home in Triq il-Ġiżi before Mr Abela arrived from a night out. The suspect's face was not covered though the grainy footage is making identification very difficult, according to sources.

It has not yet been established if the suspect walked or drove to the scene of the murder. 

READ: Killed with multiple stabs to the neck

The victim, 51, suffered multiple stab wounds, including to the neck and chest. Mr Abela's hands and legs were bound with duct tape, and his mouth covered when he was discovered by his partner in a pool of blood upon her return from overseas.

Irina Alexandrovna Micallef found the macabre scene when she returned home on Monday around 5pm. Her partner was believed to have been dead for around 12 hours.  

The police are not believed to be close to solving the murder case which shocked the Swieqi community.

Questioned three times by the police since the murder, she recently filed a police report over a case of domestic violence, sources told Times of Malta. 

Investigators are, however, convinced that Mr Abela was not murdered because of any business links or as a result of a burglary gone wrong.

Mr Abela was the owner of 21st Century Travel and 21st Century Limousines. He also owned 21st Century Boat Taxis, which was in the process of being dissolved. He was not known to the police.

The victim had four children, three from his previous marriage, and one, a four-year-old boy, from his current partner.

Picture shows CCTV cameras installed at the victim's house in Swieqi. Photo: Mark Zammit Cordina