Valletta man, 35, charged with attempted murder

A 35-year-old man from Valletta was remanded in custody Wednesday morning after he appeared in court charged with attempting to shoot his partner’s father dead, yesterday.

Massimo Caruana was arraigned under arrest before Magistrate Claire Stafrace Zammit, accused of the attempted murder of Noel Mifsud near Fort St Elmo in Valletta, yesterday morning.

The incident took place at about 10:45am yesterday morning on the St Elmo granaries outside the fort, with the shooter being apprehended by the police after a brief chase. The weapon allegedly used in the crime had not been found, the court was told today.

The 40-year-old victim was left suffering from gunshot wounds to his left leg. It is understood that he was shot at following an argument about a deal involving the sale of cars.

Inspectors Kurt Zahra and Daryl Borg charged Caruana with the attempted murder of Mifsud, using a firearm for the commission of a crime, being in possession of a firearm and ammunition without the requisite licence and causing slight injuries to Mifsud.

The court read out a medical certificate which stated that Mifsud, who was still recovering in hospital, had been shot from a distance of between 1 and 2 metres. The report details that Mifsud had both an entrance and exit wound. Investigators are yet to recover the bullet, however.

Laywer Charmaine Cherrett requested bail, but this was opposed by the prosecution, on the grounds that after the shooting Mifsud had threatened Caruana’s father, telling him: “I will shoot you in the head.”

The court remanded the man in custody.