Accused told police firearm discharged shot by accident

A court expert yesterday told jurors in an attempted murder trial he had not found any bullets or gunshot traces on the scene of the crime.

Architect Richard Aquilina explained he had been appointed by the court to draw up a sketch of the drive-in of a Madliena villa where Michael Angelo Fenech said he had been shot at.

"On examining the scene I noticed that there was a broken key in the keyhole of the main door... But no bullet or visible signs that indicated a gun had been fired were found on the scene. However, a bullet might have got embedded into a nearby palm tree," he said.

Aquilina was testifying before Mr Justice Geoffrey Valenzia in the trial by jury of Emanuel Zammit, 65, of Cospicua who is pleading not guilty to Fenech's attempted murder in Madliena and holding him against his will on February 23, 1998.

Zammit is also pleading not guilty to stealing court exhibits, including a sub-machine gun from the law courts' strong room on the night of September 18, 1993, keeping and carrying a firearm and ammunition without a licence and at the time of the commission of a crime, failing to pay tax and duty on a sub-machine gun and firing it in a residential area.

Assistant Commissioner Michael Cassar explained that during questioning Zammit told him he had gone into Fenech's drive-in because he urgently needed to use the toilet. But while he was in the drive-in Fenech arrived, hurled a bag at him and he ran away on a bicycle towards Bahar Ic-Caghaq.

Cassar said that when asked about the sub-machine gun and the pistol found in his possession, Zammit said he had found them in Fenech's drive-in.

Zammit also told the police that as he was cycling away the sub-machine gun, which he had put in his haversack, fired a shot and he fell to the ground.

Some time later Fenech turned up in a car and Zammit said he (Zammit) pointed the pistol at him but did not fire, Cassar added.

He went on to explain that during a search at Zammit's house the police seized several firearm silencers. Zammit said he made silencers to earn a living.

"I told him that silencers were not used for hunting but for killing and he told me it was man who killed not weapons," Cassar said.

Inspector Anthony Cassar said he was present when Zammit released a statement to the police the day after the incident.

In the statement, which was read out to jurors, Zammit denied trying to kill Fenech: "I did not fire one shot and the only shot that was fired was the one that was discharged accidentally while I was on the bicycle," Zammit said in the statement.

In the statement Zammit also denied being sent by Fenech's brother Alfred, known as Barbarossa, to kill Fenech and told the police that this was all a figment of their imagination.

The trial continues on Monday.