Two men fined €15,000 each for illegally launching fireworks from a field

Charges of having negligently caused serious injury to a man as a result of their actions were ruled time barred

The men illegally launched fireworks from a scaffold in a Xewkija field in 2018
The men illegally launched fireworks from a scaffold in a Xewkija field in 2018

Two men have been fined €15,000 each for illegally launching fireworks from a scaffold in a Xewkija field. Charges of having negligently caused serious injury to a man as a result of their actions were ruled time barred.

Magistrate Donatella Frendo Dimech, presiding the Court of Magistrates in Gozo imposed the fine in her decision in a case relating to an incident which happened on June 21 2018 in Xewkija, Gozo.

Edgar Ellul, Edmond Camilleri, Stephen Borg, Elton Cauchi, Anthony Caruana, Charles Caruana and Trevor Vella had been charged with letting off fireworks which were larger than one centimetre in diameter, and with having grievously injured another man.

The court noted that although Ellul held a fireworks licence, it had not been proven that he had supplied the fireworks, as he had not been shown to have been present at the time. 

Magistrate Frendo Dimech said that the evidence only showed that Borg and Camilleri had been letting off fireworks and remarked that there was no doubt that they had the necessary licence and experience with fireworks to know that the fireworks they were letting off were larger than permitted.

The prosecution had failed to prove that Cauchi, Vella and Caruana were complicit in the offence, said the court, noting they had been standing in the road and not on the scaffolding where the fireworks were let off.

Although it could not be established that they were aware of the size of the fireworks which their friends were launching, the Court said it presumed that they did know.

With regards to the charge of causing grievous injury, the court ruled that this charge was not only time-barred but also contradicted by a doctor’s certificate which stated that the man had only suffered slight injuries.

The magistrate condemned the fact that despite having the doctor’s certificate in hand, the police had relied solely on the victim’s claim.

Clearing Ellul, Cauchi, Vella and Caruana of all charges, the court found Borg and Camilleri guilty of the first charge, fining them €15,000 each.