Two knives used in fatal stabbing of Filipino man in Mellieħa apartment, court hears

Two knives were probably used in the fatal stabbing of  bus driver Marcelino Montalban Saraza, a 44-year-old Filipino man who was murdered last July in his apartment in Mellieħa.

Medical experts told the court that the man had bled to death from a stab wound to his liver and had likely already died, when he was then stabbed again in his neck.

The court heard how one knife pierced his chest and the other his neck, before being left in the sink.

The murder scene was made to look like the man had committed suicide, forensic expert Dr. Mario Scerri told Magistrate Caroline Farrugia Frendo, but this was impossible as he could never have inflicted the knife wound to his chest, whilst the stab wound in his neck had been inflicted post-mortem, and therefore clearly not by the victim.

Dr. Scerri had been appointed by inquiring magistrate Rachel Montebello to examine the body of the victim, who police believe was murdered by his partner, 44-year-old Mayumi Santos Patacsil in the early hours of 2 July. The accused Filipino is denying charges of wilful homicide, fabrication of evidence and concealing the traces of a crime. Police had found a bloodstained knife in the kitchen sink, near the body and another knife was found outside in the verandah.

“He didn’t die immediately,” Scerri said. “He definitely took some time to bleed out.”

Examined by the prosecution, the witness said there were other lesions, mostly bruises. Blood spatter analysis showed that the neck wound was not self-inflicted either.

Court-appointed dental expert David Mifsud also testified, telling the court that the accused had bite marks on her hand inflicted by the victim. Mifsud explained that the deceased also had bite marks on his left arm, left by the accused.

Caroline Della Peda, a former housemate of the accused and the victim, told the court that although she didn’t witness any fights between the couple, the accused was extremely jealous and would occasionally accuse her of being in a parallel relationship with him.

Patacsil would send her messages whilst she was at work, claiming that Della Peda wanted to seduce her partner. The witness said this was not true and that she was happily married. This fact did nothing to allay the accused’s fears, who would call up Della Peda on different numbers and accuse her of showering naked “because of Marcellino.”

Della Peda had decided to tell the landlord that she couldn’t live with the accused any more and had also filed a police report on 15 December 2020, presenting documentary evidence of this in court.

Inspector Shawn Pawney is prosecuting together with lawyers Etienne Savona and Anthony Vella from the Office of the Attorney General. Lawyers Franco Debono, Ryan Ellul and Tiziana Micallef are defence counsel. The case continues in December.