Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1479531
3 maltatoday | WEDNESDAY • 21 SEPTEMBER 2022 NEWS KURT SANSONE IT would be wise for the EU to ensure the "sustainability" of assistance being given to Ukraine, Ian Borg has been quoted telling his European counterparts. The Foreign Minister was attending a meet- ing of EU foreign ministers on the fringes of the UN General Assembly in New York. Borg was quoted in a Department of Infor- mation statement released on Tuesday, advo- cating unity within the bloc in the face of the Ukraine war. But Borg also called for a "deep analysis" of the situation and how this could be best ad- dressed "without causing economic, social and cultural hardship to Europeans". He said it would be wise for the EU to dia- logue with the "Russian community", in par- ticular that which is opposed to the war. "These are equally an essential part of the narrative of those opposed to those who are supporting and financing the barbaric acts we are witnessing," Borg said. The statement said that the meeting noted that Malta will be the only EU country, apart from France, to serve as a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council in 2023. France is a permanent member of the UN's top decision-making body. "Malta fully believes in the principles of the United Nations and furthermore, as members of the United Nations Security Council, we are committed to continue pushing forward the values of peace and security," Borg said. Ian Borg wants EU to ensure 'sustainability' of Ukraine assistance Ian Borg met his EU counterparts at a meeting on the fringes of the UN General Assembly in New York (Photo: DOI) CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 Farrugia's body was discovered inside the trunk of his own car in a Qormi valley on 5 April this year. Cross-examined by defence lawyer Ishmael Psaila, the wom- an, who used to work at a gentle- man's club in Paceville, recalled how on the night of 28 March, she had seen Busuttil in an excit- ed state. Busuttil was in need of drugs, which he didn't have any money for, she said. The woman told the court that she had left the house soon after and that was the last time she saw the accused. The lawyer asked where she knew the accused from. "He was introduced to me by friends in Paceville," the woman said, add- ing that they had been friends since 2018. Psaila probed the witness as to what kind of relationship she had with the accused. She re- plied that they "wouldn't meet often… only a couple of times a year." When the lawyer asked wheth- er they had any friends in com- mon, the court reminded the witness that she was under oath and had previously testified that she was friends with the ac- cused's brother. "We are not friends as such, we are acquaintances," replied the witness. "For me, friendship would mean something differ- ent." She claimed that her visits to the accused's parents' house in Attard were social calls in which she had been checking up on the accused's brother's health. "I had to see how his brother was do- ing after he was in hospital," the woman said. At this point, the magistrate pointed out that checking on someone's health indicated "some kind of relationship, friendly or otherwise." "That is how I am. I am a per- son who cares for others and not because we have some sort of special relationship," the woman replied. Psaila suggested the name Mario Farrugia to the witness, asking whether it sounded famil- iar to her or if she had ever met someone by that name. "I don't know him personally but I heard about him from the news," said the witness. The court asked the woman whether she had ever met or seen Farrugia. "No, never," came back the reply. The murder case was ad- journed to November. Busuttil rented garage used as crack den Separate criminal proceed- ings against Busuttil, in which he stands accused of aggravated drug possession also continued today. Proceedings in front of Magis- trate Elaine Mercieca continued with Inspector Godwin Scerri recounting how the case dates back to February 2018. Scerri said he had received in- formation about suspicious ac- tivity in St Paul's Bay. "The in- formation I received was that a particular garage was being used as a 'crack house,'" the inspector said. The Inspector's investigations had found that Busuttil was the tenant in whose name the ga- rage's lease was registered, he said, adding that a plainclothes policeman had been detailed with carrying out surveillance on the garage. "Several persons were observed entering and leaving the garage in the space of a few hours," the inspector went on. After obtaining a warrant, the garage was raided by the police. Busuttil was found inside and confirmed to the officers that he was renting it out. The officers searched the prop- erty and discovered what they suspected to be cocaine, heroin and marijuana in a room which Busuttil appeared to be using as sleeping quarters. Busuttil was taken into custody and did not answer any ques- tions and he was subsequently charged with aggravated drug possession, said the inspector. A court-appointed expert had later established that the white powder discovered in the garage was high-purity cocaine. Busuttil had later been grant- ed bail but was later jailed after breaching his bail conditions. He was subsequently released on bail a second time, said the inspector but was currently be- ing held in custody in connec- tion with the murder of Mario Farrugia. The prosecutor argued that a prison sentence was merited in this case. Busuttil's lawyer, Ishmael Psai- la submitted that although the garage had been rented out to Busuttil, it was in fact being used by a large number of people. These individuals had not been mentioned by the prosecution in its submissions today, argued the lawyer. Psaila argued that the fact that the substances seized from the garage had been passed on to court-experts and analysed did not necessarily mean that the chain of custody of the evidence was intact. "In view of the fact that there were a number of individuals who would visit and spend time in this garage and the way this evidence was gathered, the de- fence humbly submits that the chain of evidence was not main- tained." This principle had also been espoused by the Criminal Court, he said. The court adjourned the case to October for sentencing. Witness testifies she saw Busuttil in 'an excited state' Blood seen on the car Mario Farrugia's body was discovered in