Bus driver jailed for road rage attack on cyclist

A 41-year-old bus driver from Zejtun has been jailed and banned from driving after a court heard how he attempted to run over a cyclist.

Thomas Spagnol, a bus driver at Schillaci Garage, had been charged on account of a road-rage incident which took place on the morning of 9 July 2014 near Targa Gap in Mosta.

Spagnol was driving a bus in the direction of Burmarrad when he ran a stop sign, narrowly missing a cyclist who was heading in the same direction.

The cyclist, Graham Borg, followed him and caught up to the bus further down the road. When the cyclist tried to speak to the accused about this near-miss, the accused swerved the bus in his direction, mounting the pavement. Luckily, the cyclist was unharmed.

Spagnol admitted to having stopped late when joining the roundabout, but denied the offensive maneuvering. He claimed to have let the cyclist pass “as there was a pothole” and said it was impossible for the cyclist to have caught up with him or to communicate with him because the doors close automatically.

However, magistrate Francesco Depasquale was not convinced by the accused’s testimony, noting that Borg’s version of events was much more credible. He noted that the incident could have had much more serious consequences and deserved a severe punishment “to ensure that the traffic regulations apply to all.”

Spagnol was found guilty of dangerous and negligent driving, failing to stop at a stop sign, using a handheld mobile phone while driving and breaching the peace and sentenced to two months imprisonment and had his licence suspended for three months.

Inspector Maria Stella Attard prosecuted. Lawyer Victor Bugeja defended for Spagnol.