A man charged with assaulting a barman who claimed to have ended up bruised and sore for a month has been cleared of all criminal liability while his alleged victim faces the prospect of being prosecuted for taking a false oath. Mohamad Altuoma was charged during a Qawra district sitting over the incident, which had taken place in the very early hours of February 7 at a bar in Triq l-Imrejkba, St Paul’s Bay. Neil Bugeja, who ran the commercial establishment at the time, claimed to have been attacked by the accused who had turned up with his cousin, insisting on being served in spite of being told that the bar was closed. A couple of days before the incident, the same man had been turned away by the barman when he came along with a group of friends. The party of friends would stir up trouble, the bar owner subsequently testified. On the day of the incident, the accused and his cousin had allegedly attacked him and a friend of his who happened to be present at the time. The onslaught had left him badly bruised, the alleged victim testified, describing how “all his ribs were purple and he was in pain.” The accused also chose to testify in the proceedings, giving a very different...
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