Field owner kept dead man's bones as insurance

Alfredo Attard, the owner of the field where police found the remains of Mario Camilleri, known as l-Imniehru, and his son Mario in August 2013, had burnt the remains of taxi driver Matthew Zahra but kept four bones as insurance against the killers.

Giving evidence in the compilation of evidence against Jason Galea and Ronald Urry, the two men accused of killing Matthew Zahra, police inspector Fabian Fleuri said that Attard gave investigators his eyewitness account of the murder.

Jason Galea and his half-brother George Galea are accused of murdering the Camilleris in separate proceedings.

Inspector Fleuri said that on 21 July, 2013, Attard volunteered to take the police to the field to show them the burial site of Zahra, right as he was going to be released from questioning, in connection with the disappearance of the Camilleris.

“At the time he did not know the identity of the third person, but we suspected it was Zahra. He said he recognised the victim in the news, which reported the disappearance of a Valletta man wearing bermuda shorts and flip-flops. He burned Zahra’s remains on Galea’s request, but kept some bones as insurance.”

Attard said Galea’s accomplice was a man known as ‘il-Lira’, whom the police knew was Ronald Urry.

Attard told police that Galea dropped off Urry at his Birzebbugia field, before collecting Matthew Zahra. Upon his return, Galea stopped the car in way that prevented Matthew Zahra from exiting. At this point, Urry came out from a hiding place beneath a tree and shot Zahra twice in the head.

The body was place in a pre-dug hole in the field and Attard was entrusted with the burial. He was also given a number of items to hide, but Galea kept the silenced handgun used in the shooting. “Days later, Galea insisted that the remains be burnt, and Attard put them in a 45-gallon drum and burnt them to cinders, but he kept four bones intact as insurance,” the police inspector said.

“Galea had promised him money for his involvement but never delivered payment. A further €5,000 were promised to Attard a year later when Galea asked to use his field to bury another two bodies. Again, the money was not paid,” the inspector explained. 

Attard showed officers where he had buried the four bones, which forensic officers exhumed. A large number of animal remains were also found in the area. The field owner also gave the police a paper bag containing a Glock 17 with ten 9mm rounds, 11 shotgun cartridges, a packet of cigarettes, a dual-SIM mobile phone and a man’s watch. Inside a large, paper garbage bag, officers also found a baseball cap, three spent 25mm cartridges, a bullet head and a broken penknife. The knife was identified as the weapon used in the stabbing of Mario Camilleri jnr.

Subsequently George Galea, knowing he was wanted by the police, turned himself in, while officers arrested Ronald Urry.

Fleuri said the police had arrived at Alfredo Attard after questioning Emanuel Farrugia – known as ‘id-Deffien’ (‘the gravedigger’) – on the Camilleris’ disappearance.

Once police arrived at the scene of the murder, they instantly smelt the stench of decomposing matter coming from beneath a tree.

“A mound of soil showed that something had been recently buried there and when we tried digging with a metal tray and a branch, finding four human fingers. The scene was then taken over by scene-of-the-crime officers. Two bodies lying on each other in opposite directions, were found. Based on the still visible tattoos and their clothes I concluded the corpses were of the missing Camilleris. The bodies were taken to the mortuary at around 2am,” Fleuri said.

The next morning the inspector was informed that a foot had been found, in an advanced stage of decomposition was found in the same area. Emanuel Farrugia also told police that field owner Alfredo Attard knew that Jason Galea had used his field.

At first Attard denied the allegations, then admitted that he had known the accused for a number of years, having helped him bury Zahra in 2012 and then to dig the hole for the Camilleris’ bodies.

Attard also said Jason Galea brought the dead body of Mario Camilleri ‘l-Imniehru’ from inside a Peugeot Partner and placed the body in the hole. When moments later, Mario Camilleri jnr. arrived at the field, he was shot at least twice but survived. Galea then stabbed him with a penknife and hit him with a broken tile until the youth died. His corpse was placed over that of his father’s, and Attard was told to cover the bodies.

On his arrest, Galea told them that the murder weapons had been given to Attard for safe-keeping.

DNA court expert Marisa Cassar told the court that the bones found in Attard’s field had matched the DNA sequence of Veronica Zahra, the mother of Matthew Zahra.

Defence lawyer Joe Giglio on his part asked the court for bail for Jason Galea. “It is most unfair that the Attorney General keeps advising against the granting of bail, when the prosecution has ignored the court’s requests to summon Alfredo Attard to testify. The AG keeps giving the same reasons saying the charges are very serious, however such charges do not preclude the accused from being granted bail,” the lawyer said.

Magistrate Edwina Grima said the testimony of Alfredo Attard was very important in this case, and that by the next hearing, the prosecution had to state whether Attard will be summoned as a witness or otherwise.

Magistrate Grima turned down the request for bail but suggested that the accused files a fresh submission after the prosecution abides by the court’s order on Alfredo Attard.

Inspectors Fabian Fleuri, Michael Mallia and Louise Calleja are prosecuting while lawyer Joe Giglio is appearing for the Jason Galea. Dr Franco Debono is representing Ronald Urry, and Dr Stefano Filletti is appearing in parte civile for the victims’ family.