Ħamrun murder: CCTV footage shows accused carrying knives out of home

The jury of Joseph Grech, 61, and his son, Kurt Grech, 31, both accused with the murder of Brandon Pace, also known as “Galalli”, has entered its sixth day infront of Judge Consuelo Scerri Herrera.

Following an argument between Kurt Grech and his ex-girlfriend Jessica Bilocca about access to their six year-old son, Pace was stabbed five times on the 2 April 2017 in Giovanni Barbara Street, Hamrun. At the time of the murder, Bilocca was in a relationship with Pace.

The accused are currently facing seven different charges, including wilful homicide, illegal possession of knives, threats, and violation of public peace.

After the prosecution’s witnesses testified, the defence began summoning their witnesses. The trial is expected to finish later on this week.

The final witness of the prosecution, Assistant Commissioner Keith Arnaud, exhibited CCTV footage from Grech’s residence.

The footage showed Kurt Grech entering his residence and shortly after, coming out holding two knives. After the murder, one of these knives, a yellow-handled one, was found covered in blood in a bin in the vicinity.

Arnaud told the court that when the police asked Joseph Grech, he claimed that Pace had threatened his son a number of times before the incident. He also said that prior to the accident, Pace and Bilocca went looking for his son at his workplace , however at the time he was not there.

After the police interrogated Kurt Grech, he confirmed the claim of the threats and added that on a particular occasion, Bilocca had punched him with a knuckleduster in the presence of Pace. When questioned as to why this was not reported, he claimed that he did not want to escalate matters since Bilocca would be angry.

Accused claims he was threatened

Arnaud also testified that, on the day of the murder, Pace was seen on the balcony of his residence and was threatening Kurt Grech: “Stay there, because today I will kill you”.

While Kurt’s parents tried to calm him down, he allegedly replied: “This ends today and whoever stays, stays”.

During his interrogation, Kurt Grech admitted that he stabbed Pace but he insisted that it was a result of self-defence. He claimed that Pace had stabbed him in the chest first while his mother was trying to separate the two. Grech also told the police that he was stabbing “wherever it landed” and ended up also stabbing Bilocca in her leg while she intervened.

After the fight, Pace initially stood up but fell down again. It was at this point that Kurt Grech fled the scene.

CCTV footage from the roads did not record the exact moment of the murder but clearly showed the time when Kurt Grech and his parents arrived at Giovanni Barbara street, Hamrun.

The prosecution is being led by lawyers Kevin Valletta and Kaylie Bonnett from the Attorney General’s office. Lawyers Roberto Montalto, Edward Gatt and Kathleen Grima are representing the two accused. Lawyers Rachel Tua and Ishmael Psaila are appearing for the family of the victim.

The trial is ongoing.