CCTV cameras are coming to Paceville

Paceville, the nightlife mecca, will have 40 CCTV cameras installed by the summer to reduce crime and deter abuse, Home Affairs Minister Byron Camilleri said on Friday. 

The CCTV cameras will be installed at sites known for accidents, abuse and fights.

The installation of 24/7 CCTV cameras in Paceville has been on the cards for a number of years, and the issue surfaced again last year when five bouncers were caught on camera savagely beating a motionless man.

The footage showed the victim being kicked, beaten and hit with a retractable baton on New Year’s Eve in an incident that shocked the country.

The assault included bouncers 21-year-old Riald Gragjevi and 26-year-old Ryan Zammit, who were charged with injuring Ahmed Adam Idriss Albarjo. 

Gragjevi was granted bail after the prosecutor testified that the attack appeared to have been provoked by the alleged victim, who had hit him with a broken bottle.

Two other bouncers - Aleksandar Kovacic, 27, and Ivan Marjanovic, 42 - admitted being involved in the assault and were fined €100 after the victim forgave them.

During a Friday press conference in Dragonara Street - a popular road in the nightlife zone - Camilleri said the installation of the surveillance cameras, a budget measure, will be managed by LESA and the police. 

This project is part of a total investment of over €2 million covering four localities: Paceville, St. Paul’s Bay, Marsa, and Paola, with a total of more than 160 CCTV cameras.

These zones were selected following an analysis by a criminologist, who examined past crime cases. 

From left to right: Philip Fenech Chairman Town Centre Management Paceville, Home Affairs Minister Byron Camilleri and St Julian's mayor Guido Dalli on Friday. Photo: Jonathan Borg

Two different types of cameras will be installed: bullet-type and pan-tilt-zoom (PTZ) cameras.

"People will think twice before committing a crime or some form of abuse because their actions will now be captured on camera," Camilleri said.

He said LESA and the police will have access to real-time footage of any crime, and the footage can also be used as evidence when necessary.

 Chairman Town Centre Management Paceville Philip Fenech and St Julian's mayor Guido Dalli were present for the press conference.