Police express scepticism at granting of bail to Jason Galea

The police force will ask the attorney general to appeal against a court decision that granted bail to Jason and George Galea, who are accused of the murder of Mario Camilleri (known as Mnieħru) and his son Mario jnr.

Sister newspaper Illum reports that several high-ranked police officers welcomed the court’s decision with scepticism, since in the compilation of evidence, Mnieħru’s wife Mona Camilleri had declared that one of the accused (Jason Galea) went to her house to finish the business exactly after getting rid of her husband and son.

“That’s why we considered the bale granted as very risky. While bail is one of the rights of the accused, one should also consider the safety of others,” a high-ranked officer told the newspaper.

He added that his scepticism grows when one considers that Jason Galea is also accused of murdering another person, taxi driver Matthew Zahra. The latter was found buried in the same field where the corpses of Mario Camilleri and his son were discovered.

Another high-ranked officer said he could not understand the court’s decision, “but the magistrates are what they are,” he remarked.

Not of the same opinion is leading criminal researcher Eddie Attard, who said that this decision is nothing out of the extraordinary.

“The law dates back to the late 80s, and states that persons accused of homicide are entitled to bail. This is nothing new,” Attard states.

Read more in today’s issue of Illum.