Hamrun man charged with grievous injury says he fought back against armed mugger

A 50-year-old man who left prison on Tuesday has been arraigned in court on charges of grievously injuring another man in Marsa on the same day of his release.

This morning, David Monsigneur of Hamrun pleaded not guilty before Magistrate Charmaine Galea to a charge of grievous bodily harm.

50-year-old Monsigneur is claiming self-defence, alleging that the alleged victim, who is still in hospital, had attacked him with a knife after asking for money. His legal aid lawyer, Mark Mifsud Cutajar, asked for bail.

Prosecuting officer, Inspector Roderick Attard, strongly opposed the request for the man’s release, pointing to the accused’s lengthy criminal record, saying it spoke for itself and that Monsigneur was not trustworthy.

The accused also suffered injuries in the fight and was taken to a nearby polyclinic. He had told the police that he had been approached by two persons, one on a motorcycle and wearing a helmet. The alleged victim, who is expected to also face separate charges, had asked him for €20, which he had handed over.

The court was told that the accused had drug problems, which he was currently addressing and making progress with.

Mifsud Cutajar argued that the prosecution’s argument against bail due to the accused’s criminal record “had no legal basis.”

“It is true that his record is as thick as a Bible, but are we saying that bail doesn’t apply to whoever has a bad past and a similar criminal record?” The lawyer insisted that a criminal record alone is not an impediment to the granting of bail.

There was no risk of the accused escaping or contaminating the evidence, said the lawyer, pointing out that it was the accused himself who had gone to file a police report about the incident.

The court released the accused on bail, placing him under a curfew and imposing a protection order in favour of the alleged victim. Bail was secured with a €10,000 personal guarantee.