Bernice Cassar’s husband behaved “normally” when police moved in to arrest him after acquiring a key to the apartment block's common entrance from his brother, a court was told. 

Roderick Cassar, who is currently pleading not guilty to the wilful homicide of his wife, was back in court on Wednesday when the murder compilation resumed. 

The man also stands charged with stalking his estranged wife in the weeks and months prior to the fatal shooting which allegedly took place in Triq il-Bacier, Paola, early morning on November 22. 

That day Inspector Paul Camilleri was on duty at the Paola police station when a call came through at around 8:00am, alerting them to a traffic collision in the vicinity of the Kordin Industrial Estate.

Working on that information, police were going to call in LESA, recalled Camilleri who took the witness stand today. 

But soon other calls poured in with information about some fight and the use of weapons. 

A message came through over the police radio alerting them to the fact that there was a corpse on that street. 

The scene of the crime

The inspector headed to the suspected crime scene.

A lifeless body lay on the ground, covered with a sheet, blood trickling down over the road surface.

A white Nissan Qashqai model was parked nearby, both doors on the driver’s side open. 

Doctors had not touched the body so as not to disturb the suspected crime scene.

The sheet was pulled down, uncovering the female victim who had evidently been shot on the left side of her face, said the investigator.

There were also blood smears on her chest.

A pair of glasses lying nearby were also covered to prevent them from being blown away by the wind. 

The victim was later identified as Bernice Cassar and fresh information pointed in the direction of her husband as the suspected aggressor who appeared to be holed up at the couple’s Qrendi home. 

The suspect’s car, a Toyota model, was soon tracked down in Triq il-Kartaginizi, Qrendi. 

While police gathered information and footage from the alleged crime scene, Camilleri moved to Qrendi where rumours were flying about “some gas odour.”

As the magisterial inquiry proceeded, police negotiators set up direct contact with the suspect. 

After seventeen hours of negotiations, the suspect was arrested.

During the arrest, Camilleri observed Cassar’s body language. He described it as "normal" when asked about it by parte civile lawyer Stefano Filletti.  

Cassar's interrogation

The man asked the police for a change of clothes before he was escorted to hospital. 

Some two hours later, in the presence of the inquiring magistrate, he refused to give intimate samples for gunshot residue testing. 

The following day during interrogation, Cassar “wept” when shown photos of his children. 

But when asked about his wife and even when shown pictures from the crime scene, he expressed no emotions, saying only that “he was sorry about what had happened to her,” recalled the inspector. 

First shot hit the ground

Under cross-examination by defence lawyer Franco Debono, the officer said that the episode of the alleged shooting lasted some eight minutes from the time the accused reached the crime scene until he left. 

Camilleri also confirmed that another shot had hit the ground. 

Asked by Debono to explain the sequence of the shots, the witness confirmed that the first shot was the one that hit the road surface. 

The accused’s brother, John Cassar, brought Wednesday’s hearing to an end. 

He accepted to testify against his relative but only limitedly to confirm that he had handed his key to the common entrance of the block where both he and his brother resided. 

“I can testify about the key. But if there are other questions, I’ll speak to my lawyer,” said the witness, after presiding Magistrate Joseph Mifsud explained that the witness had the right to choose not to testify against his close relative. 

The case continues on Thursday. 

AG lawyers Angele Vella and Darlene Grima are assisting Inspectors Wayne Camilleri, Shaun Pawney and Paul Camilleri as prosecutors. Lawyers Franco Debono and Marion Camilleri are defence counsel. Lawyers Stefano Filletti, Marita Pace Dimech, Ann Marie Cutajar and Rodianne Sciberras are appearing parte civile.