Magistrate asked to await European Court ruling

Lawyers representing two judges facing charges of accepting bribes yesterday asked the Magistrates' Court to stop hearing their case until the European Court of Human Rights had decided a case they had filed.

Former Chief Justice Noel Arrigo, of Siggiewi, and Judge Patrick Vella, of San Pawl tat-Targa, are pleading not guilty to two counts of bribery and one of revealing official secrets in connection with a judgment handed down by the Court of Criminal Appeal against drug trafficker Mario Camilleri, whose sentence was reduced by four years. The charges are aggravated by the fact that they were public officers in duty bound to prevent crime.

Magistrate Tonio Micallef Trigona has already ruled there appeared to be enough reasons for the two former judges to face charges and evidence was being compiled against them.

But the defence yesterday said that before the prosecution continued to produce witnesses, the court should rule whether or not it was going to recognise the fact that a case had been filed before the European Court of Human Rights and stop hearing evidence until the case was determined in Strasbourg.

The defence argued that if the European Court upheld the judges' plea, the Maltese courts would have wasted time compiling evidence.

The prosecution and defence yesterday rather hotly debated whether or not the Magistrates' Court had taken notice of a constitutional judgment that the judges' rights to the presumption of innocence had been violated.

The Constitutional Court had declared "it was opportune" for the judgment to be inserted into the criminal proceedings against the two former judges.

Magistrate Micallef Trigona yesterday decreed it was obvious that the court had to examine the Constitutional Court judgment that was inserted in the proceedings and as this needed some time and considering that he had to assume duties at the Gozo Court and that the case had to be dealt with by May 27, he referred the case back to the Attorney General so that a decision would be taken at the next sitting.

Dr George Abela and Dr Joseph Giglio were counsel to Judge Arrigo while Dr Toni Abela, Dr Michael Sciriha and Dr George Cutajar were counsel to Judge Vella.

Attorney General Silvio Camilleri and Superintendent Pierre Calleja are prosecuting.