The victims of August's double murder in Sliema were both shot in the head, experts who examined the bodies told a court on Tuesday. 

Christian Pandolfino, 58, was shot from close range, his partner, art dealer Ivor Maciejowski, 30, was shot once in the head from a medium range, forensic doctor Mario Scerri said.

He was testifying in the compilation of evidence against North Macedonian bouncer Viktor Dragomanski, one of the men accused of killing the couple at their home on August 18.

Albanian national Daniel Muka, who has a history of armed robbery, is facing similar but separate proceedings while Danish national Jesper Kristiansen is facing extradition proceedings to be brought over to Malta from Spain. 

Viktor Dragomanski is one of two men charged with the murders of Christian Pandolfino and Ivor Maciejowski.

According to police investigators, the crime was a “poorly-planned” robbery, which resulted in the double murder. 

Scerri told Magistrate Joseph Mifsud that according to a reconstruction of the case, the aggressors grained entry into the house and first shot Pandolfino at almost point-blank range.

They were, however, not contact shots as this would have left a burn on the body that looked more like an explosion. They then shot Maciejowski in the face and the shot was from a medium range, he said, because the injuries he had were different to Pandolfino’s. 

Asked by parte civile lawyer Joe Giglio whether it was possible that Pandolfino could have been seen gasping for his last breath, Scerri said he could not rule it out but explained that a shot to the head causes death “very rapidly”. 

Scerri said Pandolfino had five entry points but only two of these shots had exited the body. He had shot wounds on his lips, the right side of his neck and one that went through the heart. Another shot, the sixth one, did not penetrate the body but left a mark on the skin because the victim was probably in the process of turning at the time. 

He said he observed that the front door had a few scratches and that Pandolfino was on his side close to the entrance. He said he also observed blood on the ground as well as spent firearm shells close to the victim and other cartridges on the stairs. 

Asked by the defence lawyer whether there was a possibility that two firearms had been used in the crime, Scerri said he was not a ballistic expert and could not reply to that question. 

Pathologists Ali Safraz and Tiffany Buhagiar, who conducted autopsies on both victims, explained that Pandolfino had a total of 12 wounds, but not all were caused by a firearm. Some of them were bruises.

Buhagiar said he had five entry gunshot wounds but only two exit wounds. In fact, pellets were found in the heart and the stomach while one shot went through the skull. Buhagiar said that Maciejowski had a single entry and exit wound.

Asked by Giglio whether the shots were fired from close range or from far away, Salfraz said it seemed that Pandolfino was shot closer than Maciejowski. 

Presiding magistrate Joe Mifsud informed the parties that he had received an application for the release of the stolen VW Tiguan, that may have been used by the alleged aggressors. He was, however, turning down the request for the time being until examinations are concluded. 

Homicide Superintendent James Grech presented an envelope containing almost €1,000 which were found in Dragomanski’s possession at the time of his arrest. 

The case continues on November 19.