None of the police officers involved in the shootout with a motorist who allegedly tried to run them over captured the incident on their bodycams despite shooting no fewer than 56 shots, a court heard on Wednesday.

A Rapid Intervention Unit inspector told Magistrate Gabriella Vella on Wednesday that RIU officers still did not have the mount to fix their bodycam to their body armour or helmets.

Drug squad police did not wear theirs as the red light would have given them away since they were undercover while the only officer who had a bodycam did not turn it on.

The court was hearing the compilation of evidence against 24-year-old Aiden Bartolo of Għaxaq, who stands accused of attempted murder, attempted grievous bodily harm, injuring police officers, dangerous driving, disobeying police orders and relapsing. He is denying the charges.

Bartolo was arrested on December 2 after officers fired 56 shots at the Mazda Demio he was driving.

He had been pulled over by the police on suspicion of drug trafficking but had then allegedly reversed into two officers before driving off. Police officers then opened fire on his car, wounding him in the leg, but Bartolo still managed to escape. He was later found at Miżieb after a six-hour manhunt.

Police Inspector Marshall Mallia, who is the prosecuting officer, told the court that nine officers had been involved in the operation. Seven had opened fire. He said RIU and drug squad police did not wear bodycams while his device had remained off.

He explained how uniformed RIU officers had stopped the car by blocking the road with police cars. Two civilian vehicles had stopped ahead of Bartolo’s Mazda but Bartolo had driven ahead, hitting the civilian cars and then reversing into two officers before driving towards the Mellieħa bypass.

At that point, the police fired shots at the speeding Mazda with the police giving pursuit.

He said the suspect’s car was later found abandoned at Miżieb. Bartolo was arrested by an RIU inspector after a large-scale manhunt that lasted several hours.

Cross-examined by lawyer Franco Debono, the inspector confirmed that no drugs or weapons had been found in the car or in the accused’s possession.

An RIU inspector, whose name was banned from publication, told the court that he had received instructions to stop the accused in his Mazda Demio which had been spotted near Popeye Village. He said he had coordinated with other police units to block the road.

As Bartolo’s car approached the roadblock, the inspector had approached the car, shouting “police! Stop! Stop!” he said. But the driver drove off in a bid to escape so he drew his weapon and fired shots at the rear tyre before the car collided with another vehicle.

He said the car did not stop and so he continued to fire at the rear tyre until the escaping car crashed into a van. The officer said he ran to his police car and chased the vehicle. He spotted the Mazda at Miżieb but the car was locked and the accused was nowhere to be seen.

Under cross-examination, the witness said the police opened fire to save a colleague.

“I didn’t fire to stop the car, I saw my colleague about to be run over and I shot at the tyre to slow him down,” the officer said.

He insisted that shots were fired not because Bartolo had failed to stop, but because he was going to run over a police officer.

“We were prepared for every eventuality… he had two options: he either drives into the police car or runs over the officer, and he seemed to be going for the second option.”

Asked by Mallia whether there had been a threat on his life and whether the police had jumped out of the way as they were about to be run over, the officer replied in the affirmative.

A motorist who had been driving in the area at the time told the court he thought it was an army exercise as he heard many shots being fired.

The case continues in January.

Lawyers Marion Camilleri and Francesca Zarb are also appearing for Bartolo.