Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1278887
maltatoday | SUNDAY • 16 AUGUST 2020 10 NEWS KURT SANSONE AN investigation into Lino Cauchi's mysterious disappear- ance only turned into a murder probe four years after his dis- membered body was found in a Buskett well. The delay was partly attribut- ed to the time it took to identi- fy the remains. And yet, just eight months after the gruesome find, a for- eign forensic expert roped in to assess the remains had sug- gested the victim was Cauchi. Cauchi, an accountant, went missing on 15 February 1982. He never returned back to his Santa Venera home from his office in Valletta. Two days later, Cauchi's briefcase was found aban- doned and forced open in the vicinity of Chadwick Lakes. It was empty. But then, on 15 November 1985, human body parts were discovered wrapped in black plastic bags in a well in the ar- ea known as Il-Bosk in Buskett. In July 1986, forensic pa- thologist Iain Eric West from Guy's Hospital in London had concluded that the remains were those of a man aged be- tween 30 and 40, whose body had been dismembered by the use of hand and electric saws. Cauchi was 32 when he dis- appeared three years earlier. West had concluded that the victim was killed after receiv- ing two blows to the sides of the head when still alive. The blows by a mallet that was also found in the well, fractured the man's skull. The pathologist could not determine whether the victim was alive when he received a third blow to the face. The cause of death was giv- en as cerebral lacerations and fractured skull. Pathologist's report But West's report, seen by MaltaToday, added that from the facial reconstruction car- ried out at the time, the skull was "consistent with the facial features of a man named Paul Cauchi". Lino's actual name was Paulinos. West, however, said identifi- cation of this nature was "not ideal" and suggested dental confirmation to improve accu- racy. "But there is a clear resem- blance between the photo- graph of Cauchi and the re- construction which has been carried out on the deceased's skull," West concluded. West's report from July 1986 was not enough to direct in- vestigations and the magisteri- al inquiry into a murder probe into Cauchi. It was only two years later that further forensic tests car- ried out in Australia confirmed beyond doubt that the remains found in the well belonged to Cauchi. In March 1989, then mag- A report from July 1986 was not enough to direct investigations and the magisterial inquiry into a murder probe into Lino Cauchi Cauchi murder: Forensic conclusions Macabre murder: the dismembered pieces of Lino Cauchi's body are found inside a Buskett well Timeline End November 1981 A meeting is held at the Valletta office of Joe Pace, the owner of the Magic Kiosk in Sliema. Pace was a director in Terry Ltd and a shareholder with Piju Camilleri in Tor Ltd. The people present for this meeting are Pace, Camilleri, business partners Joseph Borg and Victor Balzan, notary Joseph Saydon and accountant Lino Cauchi. Borg and Balzan jointly want to develop land they own in Fgura but Camilleri is asking for 22 plots to be transferred to his company in exchange for the building permits to be issued. The meeting is intended to finalise the transfer of plots but Borg plays for time and another meeting has to be scheduled. 8 December 1981 A contract is signed for the transfer of 22 plots in the Ta' Belinja area in Fgura from Borg and Balzan to Camilleri. However, at the last minute, Camilleri decides that Pace should appear on the contract in his stead and the plots are transferred to Terry Ltd. During this meeting, a separate private agreement is drawn up between Borg and Camilleri in settlement of another dispute between them involving their joint company Luqa Developments Ltd. When testifying in court in a case he later instituted against Pace and Terry Ltd, Borg said the private agreement was drawn up by Lino Cauchi. The agreement would see Camilleri transfer 30 plots back to Borg. In exchange, Borg would drop a court case he had instituted against Camilleri. The agreement is held by Cauchi but goes missing when he disappears two months later. 12 December 1981 A general election sees the Malta Labour Party returning to power after winning a majority of seats but a minority of votes. This gives rise to a turbulent period that lasts until 1987. 15 February 1982 Lino Cauchi returns home in Santa Venera for lunch at noon. An hour later he leaves for work at his office in Old Bakery Street, Valletta. At around 5pm two of Cauchi's clients ask for him at home but his wife Anna tells them he is not there. They point out that his car is parked outside. Cauchi never returns home. The last recorded sighting is at 6.30pm in Valletta.