Aggressor attacked with 'two knives' - sole witness tells police

Police investigators returned to the scene of the crime in Falcon House in Sliema yesterday in a bid to reconstruct the evidence they collected from the main witness to the bizarre New Year's day tragedy, that led to two young men allegedly knifing each other to death.

Accompanied by two teams of forensic experts, investigators compared notes with the initial evidence given to them by a stammering and weeping Claire Zammit Xuereb early on Sunday morning, as her 32-year-old husband Duncan Zammit lay dead in a pool of blood at the foot of his bed.

Close to the bedroom door was a man she said she had never seen before: 26-year-old, Bosnian-born Nicholas Gera, also in a pool of blood.

Police sources who spoke to MaltaToday yesterday evening said that a trail of blood on the bedroom carpet showed that Gera, also from Sliema, died after Zammit as he crawled out of the bedroom, probably gasping for air as blood gushed out of a gaping wound to his neck.

Claire Zammit Xuereb - daughter to entrepreneur Angelo Xuereb -gave her version of events on site before inquiring Magistrate Edwina Grima.

In a clear state of shock, and assisted by a police doctor, Zammit Xuereb recounted the nightmare that unfolded in her bedroom, with her three-month-old twins Millie and Jack asleep next to them.

According to Zammit Xuereb's reconstruction of the fatal events of Sunday morning, the assailant allegedly walked into the semi-lit bedroom, which is situated on the front of the house, and attacked her husband who was still tucked under his quilt.

Zammit Xuereb claimed that Gera, whom she said she had never known, was allegedly armed with two knives, whereupon she froze as she took in the scene of her husband struggling to fend off the attack as he bled from the initial strike.

According to the forensic experts who examined the crime scene, the first knife-thrust, dealt to Duncan Zammit, went through a thick duvet: possibly cushioning what might have been a fatal blow, and giving him the chance to attempt to sit up and fight back, or at least use the quilt to shield himself from his aggressor.

The struggle may have taken not more than a minute, with the two men entangled in the quilt which was found to be riddled with holes and stained with blood.

The quilt may have also helped Duncan Zammit gain possession of one of the two knives which - according to Zammit Xuereb's account - Nicholas Gera allegedly held, as it either got stuck in the weaving or Gera lost grip as the handle became slippery with his victim's blood.

Investigators are tight-lipped over what Claire Zammit Xuereb could have heard from either of the two men during the assault, a detail that might perhaps shed light over the motive behind the attack on Duncan Zammit.

As police have been unable to talk again to their only witness, given her current state of mind, it has been established that contrary to initial reports, the attack took place in the main bedroom which is situated at the front of the house, while Nicholas Gera gained access from the back terrace where he jumped into through the roof.

Once inside, Gera would have walked through the corridor, entered the kitchen and got hold of the knives. The allegation that Gera got hold of the knives from the kitchen, after entering from the back, gives investigators reason to understand that the assailant wasn't new to the house.

Forensic experts believe Gera could have picked up the two knives with one hand and continued to hold them together, stabbing Zammit with the two knives held together.

Another theory is that it may have been then, that Gera lost one of the knives, as the uneven handles made it difficult for him to continue holding them together, possibly losing one during the subsequent struggle.

An autopsy carried out on the two corpses last Monday revealed that Zammit and Gera suffered multiple stab wounds, both to the front of their upper torso and necks.

Claire Zammit Xuereb remains in shock, and unable to speak with the police who remain puzzled over the motive behind the attack on her husband.

Magistrate Edwina Grima has released the bodies for burial and arrangements are being made for Duncan Zammit to be buried on Saturday morning, with his funeral being held at the Nazzarenu parish church in Sliema. Gera's funeral will be held at 2pm today at St. Gregory's parish, also in Sliema.

But as the motive remains unclear, investigators continued to delve into the private lives of the two men, following leads from all sources around the island.

Plain clothes officers were once more spotted knocking at neighbour's doors within Falcon House in High Street, Sliema in a bid to corroborate reports of an argument which was heard at 5:30am within the Zammit household.

They were also seen on the back terrace of the penthouse in an attempt to confirm the theory that Gera made his way into the apartment after gaining access from an adjacent roof, while also seeking answers as to how could he [Gera] have managed to get into the common entrance door inside the driveway to Block C of Falcon House.

Fingerprint experts elevated prints inside the lift and stairwell inside the building, and also to the door that leads to the roof where it is believed that Gera jumped over to enter the Zammit's penthouse.

IT experts have also been tirelessly looking into every single corner of the respective men's computers, reportedly finding nothing so far that could link Gera to the Zammit's.

 Search for the motive

But as various newspaper organisations source their police leads, the main question being posed is why Gera, who on New Year's Eve worked his last shift at a Paceville restaurant, clocked off at 2:30 am before allegedly crowning off the night at the Muddy Waters bar in St Julian's, decided to go to Zammits' penthouse.

The most startling revelations centre on a possible previous connection between Zammit and Gera.

Labour organ maltastar.com are openly pushing the theory that is being considered by police investigators, that with the botched burglary being ruled out Zammit and Gera must have know each other - "intimately" according to the e-newspaper.

It further intimates the existence of a previous relationship when it says the young Gera resented the fact that Zammit "wanted to spend more time with the family" after the birth of his twins.

The crime of passion theory would have the unarmed Gera walking up to Falcon House - just a few minutes away from his Blanche Huber apartment where he grew up with his adopted brothers - getting access to the unlocked rooftop, and then jump onto the penthouse's terrace.

Toxicology analyses - which have so far not been concluded - may also determine the state of mind of Nicholas Gera, whom according to The Times was seen by eyewitnesses at Muddy Waters acting "a nuisance" and eventually being asked to leave after annoying some women.

Both the Zammit and Gera families remain unaware as to how the two men knew each other: according to Zammit's father-in-law, entrepreneur Angelo Xuereb, mobile phone records analysed by the police show no connection between the two.

But Xuereb also added another revealing detail. His panicked daughter phoned him soon after the incident, telling him that a man had attacked them with knives, prompting him to advise her to "put away the knives" as "one of the men was still alive."

The police were later informed of the incident and rushed to the scene, only to find that the two men were dead on the spot.