Borg Cardona charged with hate speech, complainant Stagno Navarra fails to appear in court

Criminal proceedings against Andrew Borg Cardona were adjourned after Karl Stagno Navarra, the complainant, failed to appear in court.

Borg Cardona faces hate speech charges after posting a comment on Facebook reading "Can we make euthanasia compulsory for Labour trolls?" The case was prompted following Stagno Navarra's police report.

The court was informed that officers had tried to serve Stagno Navarra with a summons twice, with a constable and sergeant failing to locate him at his registered address. Inspector James Mallia recalled how he had called him, and that Stagno Navarra confirmed he would indeed attend the sitting.

The complainant, however, did not appear in court, with defence lawyer Kris Busietta saying that the case should be dropped due to his absence.

Asked why Stagno Navarra could not be located at his registered address, Inspector Mallia stated that he told police he did not reside there and that he "had no fixed address".

The inspector insisted on presenting the complainant's testimony, whilst the defence argued that the case should be dismissed.

The sitting was adjourned.

From a Facebook post uploaded this morning, it appears that Stagno Navarra believed that the sitting would take place on Friday.

"This morning I will appear before the court where I will testify regarding a criminal complaint I had filed last May against Andrew Borg Cardona for hate speech against Labour Party supporters, in which he asked on Facebook why mandatory euthanasia is not carried out for Labour supporters," his post read.

"More than 3,000 of you had signed a petition in support of this action. I thank the Police Force for acting on the complaint."

In a later post, he insisted he was in court on Friday at the time and day the police asked him to be present.

Inspector James Mallia prosecuted. 

Lawyers Jason Azzopardi and Kris Busietta are appearing for Borg Cardona.