A number of young women had approached investigators in the wake of Paulina Dembska’s murder on January 2, saying the murder suspect had sent them threatening messages on Instagram, a court heard on Thursday.
The body of the Polish student was found at Independence Gardens on January 2, a few hours after she had left a Sliema hostel, where she had been lodging since October.
Testifying in the compilation of evidence against Abner Aquilina, the 20-year-old Żejtun youth who stands accused of her murder, police sergeant Malcolm Pace did not give any further details about the messages sent to other women.
He said that those who supplied the information wanted to remain anonymous.
Aquilina denies raping and murdering the 29-year-old student by strangling her to death.
Pace told the court that hours before she was murdered, she had been sharing a drink with her Colombian friend at the hostel.
A Spanish receptionist had come across them at 2.15am and later told the police the two friends were sitting at a table, a bottle of alcohol in front of them.
Since hostel policy did not allow non-lodgers to stay inside the premises, the receptionist had asked Dembska’s friend to leave.
CCTV footage showed the pair walking out of the hostel at around 2.30am.
That was the last time the receptionist saw Dembska, he later told the police, even showing them a snippet of that footage on his mobile phone.
The victim’s identity card, found near her partly naked body, led the police to identify her as well as the hostel where she had been staying.
Soon after the discovery of the body, Pace was instructed to seek out more information about the victim at the lodging.
A female receptionist confirmed that Dembska had been staying there since October and had extended her stay to January 15.
It was not her first stay at the hostel and was somewhat “a familiar face” among staff, the police were told.
The police were also shown the room that she had been sharing with four others. One of them, a Belgian man, said he was the one who last saw the victim.
All the roommates later gave their testimony at the police headquarters and the room was locked and placed under the watch of two police officers who stood there as a fixed point.
The sergeant presented 21 photos which included images of the victim’s ID card, other pictures from the crime scene showing her body covered under a white sheet, the outer façade of the hostel, other photos of her room, as well as a shot of the victim chilling out with her friend.
Asked by defence lawyer Mario Mifsud whether the hostel staff had cooperated, the witness replied in the affirmative.
The owner, who had been summoned to the premises when the police turned up to investigate, had also cooperated and answered all questions.
Another officer, Seargent Darren Debattista, exhibited a report consisting of 42 photos taken during the lifting of samples at the CID offices.
Constable Clayton Gatt from the Major Crimes Unit said he had been involved in tracing the victim’s last route, all the way from the hostel to the site where the murder took place.
Aided by footage and data supplied by a court expert, the police set out a timeline tracking Dembska’s movements from Pope Pius V Street through St Trophimus, Prince of Wales, George Borg Olivier Streets and finally Tower Road.
The last witness, constable Sandro Mamo, explained how on January 12, he had been tasked with arresting Aquilina who, at the time, had just been discharged from Mount Carmel Hospital.
Police arrived there at around 3pm and, after giving the suspect his rights and fresh arrest warrant, proceeded to escort him to the Floriana lock up.
The case continues in February.
Inspectors Wayne Camilleri and Jonathan Ransley prosecuted, assisted by AG lawyer Darlene Grima. Lawyer Mario Mifsud was defence counsel. Lawyers Stefano Filletti, Stephanie Caruana and Cristina Sutton appeared parte civile.