A restaurant manager, allegedly involved in a fight outside a Valletta bar on Saturday night, was granted bail upon arraignment on Monday while his alleged victim is still being treated in hospital. 

The incident took place at around 11pm when a verbal altercation allegedly escalated into a physical scuffle between Alan Calleja, a 34-year-old Mġarr resident, and an employee working at a nearby commercial establishment. 

Valletta police were alerted to the commotion outside the bar on Merchants’ Street. 

Through CCTV footage, investigators identified and tracked down Calleja as the suspect who allegedly landed the other man in hospital, suffering several fractures to the legs. 

The injured man was rushed to Mater Dei Hospital by ambulance and has since undergone surgery, prosecuting Inspectors Daryl Borg and Kevin Pulis informed the court on Monday. 

Meanwhile, Calleja was escorted to court under arrest, pleading not guilty to the solitary charge of having allegedly caused grievous bodily harm to the victim.

The two men had apparently known each other for years, pointed out the prosecution when explaining their objections to the defence’s request for bail. 

A number of civilians had witnessed the incident and were still to testify, argued Borg. 

Moreover, the accused’s workplace was just around the corner from the shop where the alleged victim worked. 

The injured man had another week to go before being discharged from hospital. 

Defence lawyer Franco Debono countered that this was an unfortunate episode apparently triggered by a verbal spat that had spilt over into a physical fight. 

The accused was also claiming self-defence and had explained that he had fallen onto the alleged victim.

Calleja was a married man and father-of-two with an untainted record sheet, went on his lawyer, adding that the accused had a fixed job which carried a degree of responsibility too. 

He would obey any court order and even keep away from work until the victim testified if need be. 

No weapon was used in the fight, added Debono. 

After hearing submissions, the court, presided over by Magistrate Elaine Mercieca, upheld the request granting bail under strict condition of not approaching any of the prosecution witnesses.

The accused was to sign the bail book daily, not leave home between 11pm and 6am and not go to Valletta for any reason whatsoever. 

Other bail conditions included a deposit of €5,000 and a personal guarantee of €10,000. 

Inspectors Daryl Borg and Kevin Pulis prosecuted. 

Lawyers Franco Debono and Marion Camilleri were defence counsel.