Man accused of assaulting officers maintains his innocence

A man accused of assaulting two police officers in Mġarr in May insisted today that he did not lay a finger on them and had been beaten up for no apparent reason. Jean Paul Aquilina, 24, from Mosta, insisted that he was not drunk, was not swerving as he drove on the Mġarr bypass and had done nothing to provoke the attack. He was testifying his defence in his own case in which he stands charged with dangerous driving, assaulting two Rapid Intervention Unit police officers and disobeying their orders. In a separate sitting, officers David Camilleri and Mark Tonna denied beating Mr Aquilina on May 3 at about 1am and to committing a crime they were duty-bound to prevent. Mr Aquilina said that as he was driving home from a family barbecue in Mġarr and his mobile rang. He looked at the screen to see who it was when he saw beacon lights and a police siren that signalled them to stop. The officers claimed Mr Aquilina was swerving but he insisted he was driving normally, he said. The officers then asked him to step out of the car, which he did. Mr Aquilina said he was talking to Mr Tonna as his girlfriend, Josione Vassallo, stood by their car. He gave him his ID card number and Mr Tonna...