Two acquitted of 1984 robberies

Two men were yesterday acquitted of two 1984 robberies after a court ruled that the prosecution had failed to prove its case in the context of the 18 years it had taken for it to come to judgment.

Magistrate Silvio Meli noted that the case had been assigned to him in 1999 and the change of magistrate had complicated matters because, following an appeal court judgment clarifying the rules of evidence, he had had to hear the evidence all over again.

He yesterday passed judgment in the case filed against Vincent Zammit, of Zebbug and Dennis Micallef, of Tarxien, who pleaded not guilty to:-

¤ stealing a safe with more than Lm1,000 in Maltese and foreign currency from Rex Shoe Store in St John Street, Valletta, on October 2, 1984 to the detriment of Saviour Cilia,

¤ evading Lm4,508.11 customs duty on Lm15,027.02 worth of denim fabric (92 rolls), and

¤ stealing the fabric from a factory named Castellana in Manwel Dimech Street, Qormi, some time between May 4 and 7, 1984.

Zammit was also charged with relapsing.

Magistrate Meli noted that the men were arraigned in court on February 20, 1985. The case was heard by a magistrate (who was not identified) until it was assigned to Magistrate Meli in February 1999. The reason for the transfer was not given.

On October 5, 1999, Magistrate Meli gave a ruling in which he explained how the evidence had been mainly heard by a different magistrate and he only got the case 14 years after the arraignment.

He heard submissions on punishment and put off the case to October 22, 1999.

But in the meantime, the Magistrates' Court was alerted to a judgment handed down by the Court of Criminal Appeal in September 1999 in which the appeal court clearly laid down the rules of evidence.

The appeal court had made the point that the magistrate handing down the judgment was obliged to have heard witnesses viva voce in court.

The appeal court explained that a magistrate would necessarily have to evaluate the evidence and one of the more important criteria in the evaluation of witnesses was the appreciation of their behaviour, manner and character. The rule was thus that a magistrate had to hear the evidence to be able to hand down judgment according to law.

Magistrate Meli said he had found himself in a situation which warranted him hearing the evidence all over again to abide by the appeal court judgment and he had done his best not to lengthen the proceedings any more than they had already been delayed.

On the merits of the case, Magistrate Meli noted the evidence of a co-defendant who claimed he was asked by Zammit and Micallef to give them some space in a garage he leased in Zebbug.

The co-defendant, Raymond Caruana, claimed the fabric was brought to his garage by truck. In court he said he could not remember who had driven the truck but later admitted he had told police in his statement that Zammit was at the wheel.

Magistrate Meli ruled that Caruana's evidence had not been corroborated.

In the case of the stolen safe, Magistrate Meli noted that an eyewitness had not been produced again to testify before him and, as such, in line with the affirmation of the appeal court, he could not rely on the evidence previously given.

In acquitting the defendants on the grounds that the prosecution had failed to prove its case, Magistrate Meli again remarked that the case had taken far too long to be considered "seriously, serenely and fairly".

Police Superintendent Daniel Gatt and Inspector Paul Bond prosecuted.

Dr Emmanuel Mallia and Dr Giannella Caruana Curran appeared for the defendants.