Updated 7pm

Four men and a woman charged with assaulting two police officers in Ħamrun just over a month ago were granted bail on Thursday. 

Brothers Kurt and Elton Borg, together with Elton’s wife Erika and co-defendants Christian Mansueto and Redeimen Aquilina were released from arrest under a number of stringent conditions including signing the bail book twice weekly, a curfew between 10pm and 6am and a protection order in favour of the two officers. 

The Borg brothers were ordered to deposit €7,500 each and a personal guarantee of €15,000. 

The other three co-defendants are to deposit €3,000 each and bind themselves under a personal guarantee of €5,000. 

The decrees, handed down by Magistrate Monica Vella, followed a marathon session when prosecution witnesses, including a high-ranking police officer and a sergeant who was the direct superior of the two constables, were grilled by the defence under cross-examination. 

According to Superintendent Saviour Baldacchino, one of the officers who “pushed away” one of the brothers was the first to make physical contact in the brawl. He told court the police have the authority to exercise force when necessary.

Under a barrage of questions by defence lawyer Franco Debono, the witness said that the obscene words uttered by one of the officers were not words he personally “would have chosen.” 

But he disagreed with Debono in stating that “bloody hell [ostja]” was a swear word and also did not believe that such language by a member of the corp merited disciplinary action. 

Bodycam footage was played out again in court, with particular focus on the various instances of foul words uttered by the police during the verbal altercation that escalated into physical violence. 

“Is that the way a police officer is to address the ordinary citizen?”asked Debono. 

“I’ve been through similar situations in my 25 years of experience in the corps and I got punched in the face too… but let’s not forget that there’s a person in that uniform,” replied Baldacchino. 

The officers were surrounded by a mob and adrenaline was also high, Baldacchino added.

“There’s a person in the uniform but the ordinary citizen is no animal,” rebutted Debono, as the cries of one of the Borg brothers were heard in the video. Borg was heard pleading with the officers to “stop! stop!” when his elderly mother was pushed to the ground when caught up in the brawl. 

Baldacchino claimed the situation escalated when Elton entered the scene.

Before that moment, his brother Kurt was cooperating with the officers who were in the process of issuing him a parking ticket. 

“Why did he [Elton] go there? It was two against two then and a person might feel overpowered,” said the witness. 

Moreover, Elton’s action of opening the car booth when he was not asked to, made matters worse. 

“Wasn’t that provocation?”remarked AG lawyer Kevin Valletta, breaking into the defence’s line of questioning. 

Debono insisted that the entire episode was precipitated by the officers’ attitude.

“God forbid if we come to live in a state where we are afraid to address the police! We are not living in a police state and the citizen has a right to remonstrate the police.” 

Asked whether disciplinary measures were taken against one of the constables whose “arrogant” attitude defence claim to have triggered the brawl, Baldacchino replied: “When I was last there, an investigation into the matter was ongoing”.

He said he had since been out on pre-retirement leave and was not in a position to confirm if disciplinary action was or is to be taken.

But Baldacchino insisted that Elton had disobeyed police orders.

“How was that?”asked Debono.

“By opening the boot without being asked,” prompting the lawyer to rebut that the officer’s attitude made Borg think that they were being subjected to a search.

Baldacchino was present during the interrogations following the arrests.

He had personally shown each of the five suspects footage of the moment “when things turned bad… and when all could have been avoided.”

Constable had a reputation of 'saying a word too much'

A police sergeant who was the constables’ superior testified that he never had any complaints about the two young officers involved in the brawl.

However, under further pressure from the defence, he admitted that one of the officers did have a reputation for “saying a word too much”.

“Gieli smajt li jkun ilsienu twil,” said the sergeant, adding: “But he always worked well with me.

He also confirmed that the constable had been involved in a separate incident a couple of years before when he was about to issue a parking ticket to a woman who was dropping off her son at a Santa Venera school.

A verbal argument ensued between the policeman and the woman. She slapped him in the face.

The driver subsequently faced criminal prosecution over the incident.

The case continues.

AG lawyers Jennifer Polidano and Kevin Valletta prosecuted together with Inspector Elisia Scicluna.

Lawyers Arthur Azzopardi, Franco Debono, Jacob Magri, Charles Mercieca, Mario Mifsud, Nicholas Mifsud, Matthew Xuereb and Alex Scerri Herrera are defence counsel.

Lawyer Herman Mula is appearing parte civile.