Two file protest over case delays

Two foreign men, charged with their involvement in causing the mayhem during the Croatia-Malta World Cup qualifier earlier this month, yesterday filed a judicial protest in which they called on the prosecution to produce all its evidence against them as soon as possible.

In the protest filed in the First Hall of the Civil Court, Bosnian Edis Zjajo and Croatian Goran Vete explained that they had been charged with causing damage at the national stadium on September 7 and the compilation of evidence against them had been appointed to start last Tuesday.

During that sitting the prosecution declared it had three witnesses but did not produce them all in that sitting.

The case was put off to Thursday so that the prosecution would produce the remaining witnesses but, on that day, the prosecuting inspector informed the court that he was ill and the sitting was put off to next Monday.

Mr Zjajo and Mr Vete argued that the prosecution could have been replaced for Thursday's sitting. The police were not doing all they could to close their case. This "abusive behaviour" was detrimental to them as they were foreigners who worked or studied abroad.

Although they had been granted bail they could not leave Malta and, the longer the proceedings lasted, the worse it affected their careers.

They called on the prosecution to present all its evidence and held it liable in any damages suffered.

Lawyers Malcolm Mifsud and Cedric Mifsud signed the protest.