A man who allegedly stabbed his cousin on the shoulder with a knife and turned himself in at a police station shortly afterwards has been granted bail/

The incident allegedly took place a week ago inside the kitchen of a Żebbuġ residence which the victim shared with two others.

The injured man walked into the Żebbuġ police station on April 4 evening, telling the duty officers that he had been stabbed in the shoulder and asking for medical assistance. An ambulance rushed him to hospital.

A police sergeant who followed the ambulance team could not get much information from the alleged victim who was unable to speak.

However, the man’s sister, who had been in another area of his home when the incident took place, identified Abdelaziz Lakehal - a 49-year-old Moroccan national - as the alleged aggressor. 

While investigators were tracking down the suspect’s address, they received a call from the Ħamrun police station informing them that the suspected aggressor had just turned himself in. 

On Thursday he was charged with grievously injuring the alleged victim who was present at the arraignment, accompanied by his sister. The accused pleaded not guilty.

The victim took the witness stand, explaining that he wanted to forgive the accused. 

Parte civile lawyer Noel Bianco cited article 543(e) of the Criminal Code that allowed victims of domestic violence to request the court to stay proceedings against the aggressor. 

However, when asked directly by the court about the accused’s home address, it turned out that the victim did not know where his alleged aggressor lived.

The court waived aside the request. 

The defence then requested bail. 

AG lawyer Etienne Savona objected, arguing that there were civilian witnesses still to testify and that the knife injuries were grievous. 

Moreover, the accused had been in Malta for only around a month. 

Defence counsel Colin Galea rebutted that the accused had lived in Malta previously before returning recently and had an expired Maltese ID card. 

The man’s conduct sheet was clean and his sister, who has been living in Malta for 30 years, was willing to step in as a third-party guarantor. 

Asked about the number of civilian witnesses, prosecuting Inspector John Sammut confirmed that the alleged aggressor and victim were alone in the kitchen when the incident took place. 

Third parties were “upstairs,” implying no one else had witnessed the scene. 

Defence lawyer Nicholas Mifsud stressed that in light of that information, coupled with the fact that the victim wanted to forgive the accused, there was no reason why bail should be denied. 

While the accused, assisted by an Arab-speaking interpreter, sat in the dock, head bent low and wiping away tears, his sister confirmed she was willing to guarantee that he would abide by bail conditions. 

After hearing submissions, presiding Magistrate Kevan Azzopardi upheld the request against a deposit of €2,000, a personal guarantee of €13,000, signing the bail book three times weekly and under a curfew between 8pm and 6am. 

AG lawyers Etienne Savona and Manuel Grech prosecuted together with Inspector John Sammut. 

Lawyer Nicholas Mifsud and legal procurator Colin Galea were defence counsel.

Lawyer Noel Bianco appeared parte civile.