Gangland vendettas, family feuds, and blackmail

Unlike the previous year, 2013 started without any major drama for law enforcement officers but turned into a year seeing eight murders, of which the police solved four. In 2012, the number of murders was 11.

Valentine's Day murder

Four days after Valentine's Day, Ronald Galea, 65, of Birkirkara, was shot outside his meat factory in Hal Far. At around 4:45pm on Monday 18 February, Galea left the Continental Meat Company - a meat factory he owned - and drove off in his Ford Mondeo. Upon exiting the vehicle to lock the gate, a hooded man approached the victim and shot him eight times in the back and head.

A passer-by heard the shots and saw Galea fall to the ground. Immediately calling the police, the eyewitness informed investigators the hooded killer had left the scene in a silver Toyota Vitz. Moments later an ambulance arrived on site but Ronald Galea had lost his fight with death.

Investigators believed that unknown to Galea, his killer had been waiting for him. The weapon used was a 9mm semi-automatic handgun. Two days later, the police held a man in his 30s who worked in the same sector as the victim, to assist them in their investigations. Galea was owed substantial amounts of money, however the credit was all related to his business.

The police did not arraign anybody over the killing.

The gangland saga

Three months later, gunshots claimed the life of another man in the first of four gangland vendetta murders. After pure chance saved him from a car bomb attempt back in 2012, at 11am on 31 May, luck ran out for Paul Degabriele, known as 'Is-Suldat', when he was shot outside the Enemalta customer care office in Belt il-Hazna, Marsa.

The 49-year-old from Fgura, left a coffee bar and entered into his Toyota Hilux when his assailant drove by in a white van. CCTV footage taken from nearby buildings did not confirm if this was a drive-by shooting, or whether the assailant emerged from the car to kill Degabriele.

Witnesses saw a person with bloodstained clothes walking away from the scene. The white van, identified as the assailant's vehicle, was later found burnt in Hamrun.

Photo: Identikit of suspect in Paul Degabriele murder

Acquaintances of Degabriele's had informed officers it was strange that the victim was not accompanied by his bodyguard, who apparently met him every day at 6am. The victim's look-out was well known to police circles. The police searched for a white male, approximately 5-foot 8 inches tall, who was either medium-built or well-built. Investigators believed the shooter had been accompanied by another man.

The first arrest was of an eyewitness at the crime scene. Investigators said the suspect could have also been involved in a car bomb attempt on Degabriele's life.

Back in December 2012, Degabriele was arrested in connection with the murder of Joseph Cutajar, 46, known as il-Lion - shot dead as he emerged from his car in Mill Street in Mosta - and Josef Grech, known as il-YoYo, found dead in Bahar ic-Caghaq.

To date, nobody was arraigned over this murder.

Barely a month later, the body of notorious drug trafficker Mario Camilleri known as 'l-Imniehru' was found in a field in Birzebbugia, next to the corpse of his son Mario Camilleri Jnr.

On 17 July, a day after wife and mother Mona Camilleri reported her husband and her son missing, the police - led by Mona Camilleri's own brother Jason Galea, now charged for the murder - searched a field in the area known as Il-Qajjenza. Underneath a tree and metres away from a small room the police found two bodies buried in shallow graves, the bodies were identified as those of 51-year-old Mario Camilleri 'l-Imniehru', and his son Mario, aged 21. The summer heat and the fact they were buried in manure from a farm adjacent to the field, had accelerated the bodies' decomposition and complicated the autopsy.

24 hours after the discovery, the police arraigned 38-year-old Jason Galea in connection with the murder of the Camilleris. His half-brother George Galea, 41, was subsequently arraigned over similar charges.

Matthew Zahra

Based on court evidence, George Galea was picked up by Jason Galea in Marsaxlokk who turned up with Mario Camilleri Snr. The three drove to the house of a notary in Marsaxlokk where Jason Galea exited from the car, only to return to shoot Camilleri twice in the head. The Galea brothers reclined the passenger seat to cover the dead body and drove off to a field in Birzebbugia where the corpse of Camilleri was lowered into a pre-dug shallow grave.

Moments late, Camilleri's son Mario was dropped off at the field by a man identified as Leli 'd-deffien'. Jason Galea started hitting him with a loose floor tile and asked George to retrieve his handgun from inside a room in the field, and shoot Camilleri. When Galea refused, Jason stabbed the youth 34 times then finished him off with two shots. His body was dropped next to that of his father.

The case is still ongoing. Magistrate Anthony Micallef Trigona presides.

During the search for the Camilleris, the police also unearthed parts of a decomposed corpse. Camilleri's widow Mona told the police she had heard Jason Galea, one of the men accused with her husband's murder, was also involved in the killing of taxi driver Matthew Zahra. Zahra disappeared on 15 August 2012 and his father Vince Zahra filed a missing report on the evening of the feast of Santa Marija.

On 23 July, Jason Galea and Ronald Urry, 49 of Paola, were charged with the murder of Matthew Zahra.

Galea admitted to police that he had met Zahra at Marsaxlokk, luring him to the field to unearth a stash of drugs and money buried in it. The two drove there in a white Skoda Felicia. As Galea got out of the car to open the gate to the field, Ronald Urry emerged from behind a nearby tree and shot Zahra twice in the head. They then drove into the field to carry Zahra to his burial site, which had already been dug out. The revolver was thrown into the sea, and Galea also destroyed his mobile phone, disposing of it in a field near Ghar Dalam.

In court, Galea claimed he was desperate and angry. He had lost everything to Zahra, who demanded €500,000 in blackmail money for him not to publish an incriminating photograph he claimed would destroy Galea's marriage. Zahra had also purchased property that Galea was being forced to pay, in instalments and chased Galea over exorbitant amounts of money.

Alfredo Attard, the only eyewitness of the murder of Matthew Zahra and the man who disposed of the victim's bones might not be arraigned or asked to testify as he is currently receiving treatment for cancer. In the final sitting of this compilation of evidence,the prosecuting inspector informed the court that discussions with the Attorney General, regarding Attard, are under way and it is still unclear if Attard will be summoned to testify or even arraigned on separate charges.

The case is still ongoing. Magistrate Edwina Grima is presiding.

'Tree of death'

Beaten up: Gerald Galea was assaulted by his victim before he ran him over.

This year also witnessed the murder of 54-year-old, John Spiteri of Rabat, Gozo on 19 June. The incident happened when Gerald Galea saw the victim chopping a Tamarisk tree in Triq Santa Marija, Qbajjar.

The victim and his 24-year-old son Matthew were at the Qbajjar car park clearing up the area to set up their kiosk when they came across an overgrown shrub. The father proceeded to cut the shrub when Gerald Galea drove by and identified the shrub as a protected species of tree known as a 'tamarisk bruka'.

The elderly man told the Spiteris to stop cutting the tree, as it was protected. The two men allegedly shouted abuse at him and went on with their work. Galea told them that he would be reporting them to the police. The argument escalated into a fight. While still in his car, Galea was punched, and Spiteri grabbed him by the throat in an attempt to strangle him.

Barely seeing through his injuries, Galea attempted to flee the scene. As he drove off in the car, according to Galea, he realised his car had run over something - turning out to be John Spiteri. The two men were taken to hospital however hours later John Spiteri died possibly due to internal bleeding from the injuries he had sustained.

On 21 June the police arraigned Galea with charges of killing John Spiteri and with the attempted murder of Matthew Spiteri. The case is ongoing.

The Russian connection

On 10 October, the body of 47-year-old Paul Grech was found in a crevice at l-Ahrax tal-Mellieha. He had been stabbed multiple times.

The man had been reported missing a week earlier. After finding his Isuzu vehicle, the police found that the body was in a crevice which was covered by garbage bags and other material. The body, stuck between the rocks, had already started to decompose. An autopsy revealed that the man had suffered multiple stab wounds but that he had died from a single wound to his heart. The police had to wait for DNA tests before confirming the man's identity.

In connection with the murder, the police interrogated a Russian man living in Gzira, believed to be close to the victim. The Russian had left Malta for Sicily on 12 October and made his way to Latvia and Russia. He was arrested at the airport on his return. Grech was believed to have bought a large farm in Russia to set up a potato business with the Russian man.

Nobody was arraigned in connection with this case.

Kalkara shooting

Joseph Caruana, 61, of Kalkara was killed on Sunday 27 October, when his daughter's former partner shot him when he intervened in an argument between the former couple. His 27-year-old daughter Simone and her three-year-old daughter were also injured in the shooting.

The following day, Godwin Scicluna, 52, known as 'il-Goodie' was charged with the murder of Caruana and grievously injuring his former partner and one of their daughters.

On a hot Sunday morning, the sound of shooting shattered the peace of St Leonard Street in Kalkara. Simone Caruana rushed out of the residence of her former partner, carrying one of her daughters and another running close behind. She knocked on the door of a neighbouring police officer, shouting that her father had been shot dead.

Constable Ryan Grech, rushed to the farmhouse where Scicluna and Grech had been living together until August. On the floor of an internal yard, Grech saw the dead body of Joseph Caruana with his nephew kneeling next to him, and the eight-month baby in its carrier on the kitchen table. Scicluna was in the yard about to light a cigarette.

Investigations revealed that the accused and Simone Caruana had been together for a number of years. From their relation, four children were born. However in August the couple split after the man started beating Caruana and threatening her with murder. The woman never filed a police report reiterating she did not want to escalate matters.

On the fateful day, the family had dined together but an argument over a digital camera broke out, leading to the accused fetching his shotgun and threatening her he would shoot her. The woman struggled to take the weapon away from Scicluna and told her daughter to call her grandfather for help. After the grandfather intervened, the woman and children ran towards the door, but Scicluna shot the man in the back, then chased the woman into the streets shooting in her direction. Simone Caruana suffered gunshot injuries in her shoulder.

The case is ongoing, Magistrate Edwina Grima is presiding.