A man who assaulted officers at the Sliema police station and fiercely resisted arrest allegedly threatened one of the police officers he would "bruise him up" if he approached him

Details of the violent incident emerged on Monday at the first hearing of the compilation of evidence against Charlton Mifsud, a 39-year-old Mqabba haulier who is pleading not guilty to assaulting three officers, one of whom suffered a fractured wrist bone. 

That officer, left hand in plaster, was the first prosecution witness.

Court heard how, on October 11, the constable was in the yard of the Sliema police station assisting with another investigation when at around 7pm, he heard a lot of noise and shouting. 

His bodycam was automatically activated and he sensed there was some sort of trouble.

Stepping indoors, the officer spotted a stranger, later identified as Mifsud, shouting at one of his colleagues, banging his hand against a perspex screen and drumming up a whole commotion. 

He heard his colleague tell that stranger, “sorry, give me your ID card.” 

But the stranger said he did not have his personal document and did not recall the number. 

The officer warned Mifsud that he would arrest him.

As the angry man was about to leave the police station, an officer was instructed to go after him to get his ID card details. 

But out on the front porch, Mifsud kept up his aggressive stance, making fists at the officers who tried to calmly convince ("bil-kelma t-tajba”) him to follow them inside.

Putting his face up close to the witness’ bodycam, Mifsud pretended to comb his hair. He then raised his hand and the officer grabbed it.

“No, no, no, you won’t arrest me,” he taunted, ignoring their orders.

Sensing that the man would try to hurt them, the witness recalled how he floored Mifsud, bringing him down sideways.

“We did not want to hurt him. We followed the proper training we got at the [police] academy,” testified the officer, confirming under cross-examination that four officers were involved in the incident. 

But still, he resisted arrest, struggling as the officers tried to handcuff him.

“All we heard from him were swear words and shouting.” 

The witness recalled how he pinned Mifsud down with his left hand while trying to pull his handcuffs from the back pocket with his right hand.

Mifsud punched him on his left hand. 

“I felt a sharp pain. The strength in that hand appeared to weaken. But I had to go on with my work and duty. I didn’t want to leave my colleagues alone,” said the witness. 

“The man was aggressive and strong,” he added. 

In spite of his painful hand, the officer lifted the handcuffed man into a seated position, then escorted him all the way from the porch to the inner yard where he and his colleagues tried to calm him down. 

They offered Mifsud a drink and a cigarette. He refused the drink but accepted the cigarette. 

While waiting for an ambulance to ferry him to the hospital, Mifsud finally gave his particulars to the police. 

“He gave his ID number perfectly… so he knew it well,” said the witness.

Mifsud’s violent reaction caused a commotion at the police station where third parties accompanied by children were filing reports that evening.

“Children were terrified,” said the officer. 

Defence lawyer Lennox Vella pointed out that Mifsud suffered hand injuries because he was handcuffed too tightly. 

“It could be that [Mifsud’s] bracelet got caught in the handcuff, resulting in that tightness,” explained the witness. But the handcuffs were subsequently loosened. 

“How did you manage to work with that fracture?” asked Vella.

“The adrenaline drive kept me going. We are taught to put up with some pain… When he punched me on my hand, I felt it snap... in fact, my bodycam recorded me saying ‘Ah!’ as I lifted my hand… it turned purple,” explained the officer.

An x-Ray at the Mosta health centre subsequently confirmed that the policeman’s wrist was fractured. 

Mercedes drifting dangerously on a Birkirara street

Mifsud had been called to the Sliema police station after a police officer reported dangerous driving in Birkirkara a week before.

That officer also took the witness stand on Monday. 

He recalled that on October 4 he had spotted a black Mercedes exiting a side street onto Triq Tumas Fenech, then “drifting” sideways, back and forth, all the way upwards from St Helena’s Basilica.

One lane was closed to traffic at the time and those driving manoeuvres were “very dangerous”. 

The officer flagged down the Mercedes. The car stopped momentarily but the driver suddenly drove off again. 

The officer managed to jot down the car’s number which identified the owner as Carmel Mifsud - the defendant’s father. 

But at the police station, the man immediately took a defensive stance.

When told that police were following proper procedure the man refused to seek out a lawyer and said he did not want to sign a refusal form. 

“I won’t sign anything,” Carmel Mifsud complained. 

His son joined him soon afterwards, insisting he was the car owner and that he had documents as proof.

“I’ll come with my lawyer because the car is mine,” insisted the son, becoming increasingly agitated, shouting and banging on the police desk and perspex screen. 

“Do you know who was driving that day?” he insisted. 

When the officer told him that investigations were still ongoing, a younger man grabbed his father’s hand, saying: “Mela let's go!” 

The situation escalated as father and son stepped outside.

“Don’t touch me!” shouted the defendant as he resisted arrest. 

His father joined him, trying to block the arrest, grabbing one of the officers by his uniform.

He too had to be pinned on the ground while officers tried to calm him down, the court was told. 

The case, presided over by Magistrate Giannella Camilleri Busuttil, continues.

AG lawyer Brandon Bonnici and Inspector Ian Azzopardi prosecuted.

Lawyer Lennox Vella is the defence counsel.

Lawyers Herman Mula and Silvan Pulis are appearing parte civile.