A man allegedly threatened to blow up a Valletta bar after squabbling over some money issue and refused to calm down when police intervened, a court heard on Monday.

Police officers as well as the bar owner and a third party involved in the rowdy scene that broke out late on July 15 outside the bar in Strait Street, testified in proceedings against Francis Grech who allegedly triggered the incident.

It was just past midnight when a father and son turned up at the Valletta police station to report that Grech, a Valletta resident, was hovering in the vicinity of the bar, hurling verbal threats at the owner and his business partner, the younger of the two men who later went to file a report.

Several officers headed to the scene.

“I honestly cannot recall the accused’s exact words,” testified one of the officers, Jean Paul Zahra, claiming that the argument appeared to have been triggered by some money issue.

Grech grew more agitated when the bar owner asked if “he wanted to square matters with him,” said PC Charles Degiorgio.

As the owner was asked to move away, Grech allegedly approached a police sergeant “aggressively”, stepping into the officer’s “personal space.”

He also spoke in an aggressive manner towards an inspector, although at no time did he hit out at the police.

Another witness, PC Joseph Mallia, recalled how Grech’s verbal threats kept coming all throughout the incident.

“I’m not scared of you,” Grech persisted, resisting arrest as police pinned him on the ground to apply handcuffs.

“He kept shouting all the way to the police station and later even at the polyclinic where he was escorted after asking for medical assistance,” said Mallia when asked by the defence why the accused needed medical assistance if police claimed to have used “minimal force.”

Asked by presiding Magistrate Astrid May Grima whether the accused had any visible injuries at the time, the witness recalled none.

The owner, Floyd Carbonaro, testified that he had gone to the bar after one of his staff called to say that Grech had turned up asking for money.

“He was drinking Vodka but he wasn’t drunk” said the witness.

As Grech kept asking for money and threatening to “burn down the place,” the owner ordered him out and never to step in the premises again.

But Grech banged on the tables outside, scaring away customers while the owner looked on calmly until police arrived.

Earlier that day, Grech had met an old friend whose son was the bar owner’s business partner and asked him for money.

“We used to play football together. I know Frankie very well and I always tried to help him. But that day he did not seem his normal self,” said Alexander Giglio.

When his daughter, who worked at the bar, called to say that Grech was causing trouble,  Giglio headed there and tried to calm down the agitated man.

But the accused kept threatening to blow up the place and burn them down.

“I’ll go down and explode your gas cylinders,” Grech allegedly threatened.

It was only later that the witness found out that there was no gas inside the premises.

But at the time, he did not wish to take risks and that was why he and his son went to file a report.

The situation escalated after the police intervened.

 “Did he touch you at any time?” asked defence lawyer Joseph Bonnici.

“Not at all. Not even my daughter. I would have told you,” replied the witness, as he stepped off the witness stand.

Prosecuting Superintendent Victor Aquilina presented body cam footage of the incident and the court appointed an expert to extract and analyze the data.

The accused was remanded in custody.

The case continues.