Updated | Għaxaq double murder: Magistrate slams AG’s ‘bad management’ of case records

The magistrate said it was unacceptable for records of the case to only have arrived at the courts on the morning of the next hearing, however the AG's office has hit back, saying that it was granted till the 12 June to analyse the acts of the case

3 June 2019, 1:34pm
by Matthew Agius

4 min read

Updated at 7pm with reaction by AG's office

The Attorney General’s office came in for some criticism this morning after recordings relating to the double murder case that took place in Għaxaq in March only reached the court on the morning of the next hearing.

Joseph Bonnici, 38, stands accused of the double murder of his mother and sister, with the compilation of evidence against him continuing before magistrate Joe Mifsud this morning.

The sitting was however unable to proceed as planned due to the fact that the prosecution could not summon certain witnesses as the records of the case had only reached court from the AG’s Office at 9am on Monday.

Such a delay raised “serious questions about the management of cases by the AG’s Office,” the magistrate said, pointing out that a copy of the note of referral could at least be forwarded to the Court Deputy so that the prosecution could summon its witnesses in due time for the next hearing.

The Court ordered that a copy of this minute be sent to Attorney General Peter Grech and Justice Minister Owen Bonnici.

The sitting also saw a forensic expert exhibit the mallet allegedly used by the murderer after shooting his victims.

The long handled implement was exhibited in a large paper sack with the expert explaining that she had carried out a comparative analysis of DNA samples taken from the alleged murderer and his two victims.

Another court expert was appointed to download and analyze CCTV footage from a number of locations linked to the murder, including footage from his sister’s place of work, which showed Bonnici turn up on the 26 March to see whether she had reported for work.

More footage, this time from the victims’ home, showed both the mother and sister inside the home, shortly before their murder.

They were last seen on 26 March between 8:54pm and 9:10pm, the expert explained, adding that there was no footage between 9:23pm and 10:04pm of the following day.

Other footage from the Wasteserv civic amenity site had recorded the accused’s car spend four or five minutes at the site.

An application filed on behalf of the accused’s girlfriend who, following the murder, had suddenly found herself out of the home she had shared with her partner for the past ten years, had also been brought to the attention of the court.

It was informed that the woman had been living with a friend in the meantime but needed permission from the court to retrieve her personal belongings from the Ghaxaq premises.

The Court adjourned the case to Wednesday for the purpose of hearing witnesses who were meant to testify today.

Lawyers Franco Debono and Marion Camilleri are defence counsel.

Attorney General’s office issues clarification

In a reaction, the Attorney General’s office said it would be formally submitting a reply in the acts of the case but said it wished to clarify a number of points.

“The office of the Attorney General received the acts of the case for the first time on 29 April 2019. After an extension issued by Criminal Courts on the request of the Attorney General’s office, the same office had till the 12 June 2019 to examine the acts and issue a deferral or bill of indictment,” the AG’s office said.

“It was only for the sitting not to be wasted, once the AG’s office was aware that there was a sitting scheduled for the 3 June, that the acts weren’t kept till the 12 June, and were sent back in order to allow for the sitting to take place.”

It added that a number of witnesses had testified during the sitting after being summoned by the police.

“Finally, it must also be said that the Court of Magistrates was informed (through an email to the deputy registrar on the 29 May) that despite the stated extension, this office was always going to send the acts for the sitting to go ahead, as it in fact did,” the AG’s office said.

It said said the office had fully cooperated with the courts, and went beyond what was required of it, insisting that it is “absolutely not the case” that it is responsible for some sort of mismanagement or delay in proceedings.

Matthew Agius is Senior Reporter on Law and Court Affairs at MaltaToday. He is also a Leg...