Paceville assault bouncers indicted
The six men who were caught beating two foreigners last May on CCTV footage appeared in court yesterday before Magistrate Joe Mifsud. The footage, taken from a CCTV camera in Triq San Ġorġ, Paceville, was shared around social media.
The six bouncers accused are Simon Cassar, William Briguglio, Carmel Sghendo, Jurgen Sghendo, Ezekiel George Mintoff and Carmelo Zammit. The ages of the accused range from 23 to 53.
The six were accused by inspector Trevor Micallef of causing grievous injuries to victims Ali Alhasan and Mahmoud Ahmad Al Smadi, a 29-year-old Syrian man and a 33-year-old Jordanian man respectively, as well as instigating a fight and disturbing the peace on the 21 May. Out of the six, only one had the licence required to work as a security guard, the court was told.
The court was told that one of the men may also lose his sight following the incident.
Ali Alhasan arrived at the Courts from the Corradino Correctional Facility, having been there since Sunday afternoon after being charged with attempting to rape a 12-year-old girl, to which he has pleaded not guilty.
Micallef told the court how the CCTV footage is not the full context of what happened and the fight itself was not included in the frame. Explaining the video, Micallef said that one victim is seen to be speaking to Zammit when Mintoff walks towards him from behind and hits the back of his head. The man turns, and Mintoff then proceeds to punch the man till he is no longer conscious.
Asked by lawyer Charlon Gouder whether more than two foreign men were involved in the incident, the prosecution said a third person had been seen attempting to calm down the situation, but after the victim was knocked unconscious, the third took off his shirt and asked the bouncers to fight.
Micallef went on to say that when the police arrived on the scene they saw two men injured on the ground and covered in blood.
Testifying, Al Smadi said that he and Al Hasan were on their way home when the incident happened, adding that he saw a bouncer who he knew, pointing to Jurgen Sghendo. He continued to say that he was hit on the head from behind and “others joined in.” Al Smadi did not recall what happened as he was dizzy and could not see well, unable to recognise who hit him at the back of his head. An ambulance then arrived and checked him, he recalled to the court. He explained that the incident left him with a broken nose, partially deaf from his left ear and suffering a fracture above his orbital ridge.
Testifying in a sometimes unclear manner, Ali Al Hasan explained how on that night he went to Paceville, near Clique. He recognised Jurgen Scghendo, Ezekiel Mintoff and Simon Cassar. He testified that Cassar hit him with a bottle and Sghendo pushed him into a glass door.
The court added that although the men will not be arraigned under arrest, he will not tolerate people missing sittings. The Magistrate warned them that he could bar the security guards from going to Paceville if they defied him, and issued a provisional protection order for the two victims till the case ends. If the protection order is breached without a valid reason, a sixmonth prison sentence and a fine up to €2,039 could be given.
Lawyer Andy Ellul said that the defence was reserving the right to take legal steps against those who circulated the footage on social media “in breach of the data protection act.”
The court replied that it “wasn’t going to stand in their way,” saying it had taken a consistent line on the abuse of social media, but would not censor the media, refering to it as “the watchdog in our country.”
“At times, the court feels it is the judiciary and the media who are protecting the interests of society and those who live in this country,” the Magistrate said. “The media should not be a lapdog but a guard dog and the court is prepared to protect the media in the carrying out of its duties as long as these are carried out in line with the country’s laws and the code of ethics.”
Ellul replied that he was not against journalism, but sharing CCTV footage from a public place was a breach of the Data Protection Act.
The court concluded that there was sufficient evidence for the Attorney General to issue a bill of indictment against the men.
The case will continue next month.