Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1544415
6 maltatoday | WEDNESDAY • 15 APRIL 2026 NEWS Former-policeman testifies, denies blocking road in fatal Zebbug crash that killed pillion rider FORMER policeman, Christo- pher Cutajar testified during the compilation of evidence against him. Cutajar, aged 51 from Żabbar was arraigned in court in 2023 fol- lowing a fatal traffic incident that occurred in Żebbuġ two years ago. Cutajar was charged with the involuntary homicide of Lisa Ma- rie Curmi, a 32-year-old woman from Mtarfa, who had been riding pillion on a friend's Harley David- son motorcycle when it was in- volved in a collision with Cutajar's Toyota Porte on 17 May 2020. She died in hospital ten days lat- er. The driver motorcyclist was a friend of Curmi and suffered light injuries. In his testimony on Tuesday, the accused explained that on the day of the incident he had gone to Żebbuġ to wash his car. As he was exiting onto the main road, he said he stopped and allowed one car to pass. Seeing no other vehicles ap- proaching, he proceeded to exit. He recalled checking his right- hand side mirror and accelerating in the direction of Rabat. He said that suddenly he heard a loud impact. He recalled seeing a man running, which led him to believe something had happened. He stopped the car and got out to check if the man was injured. The man was accompanied by a woman and the accused asked him whether he was hurt. An ambulance was called. He said he only remembers events up to that point. Lawyer Lennox Vella, represent- ing the victim's family, cross-ex- amined the accused. The accused said that the car wash, Pippo's Car Wash, is locat- ed near St Dorothy's School, in a main read near a speed camera, leading towards Mdina and Rabat. When exiting the yard, he said he used his indicator to move into the inner lane and proceeded up- hill. He repeatedly insisted that at the moment he exited, he saw no oncoming traffic from the mirror. He said that after allowing one car to pass, he checked his mirror again, saw no approaching vehi- cles, and drove forward. He add- ed that he had a clear view of the road and insisted that no one was coming. Lawyer Vella maintained that, due to the layout, it was not possible not to obstruct both lanes when exiting, as drivers are effec- tively forced to move into the fast lane. The accused denied this. He also challenged the version giv- en by another witness, who had claimed that he exited in a way that blocked both lanes and pre- vented the motorcycle involved in the accident from passing. The accused denied ever seeing a mo- torcycle approaching and rejected claims that he blocked both lanes or left no room for another vehicle to pass. The accused also described this witnesses' testimony as untrue, insisting that the witness arrived after the incident and could not have seen what had happened. He said she only arrived after he had already exited his vehicle and called an ambulance. When pressed by Vella: "Are you calling her a liar?", the accused replied: "Yes, she is a liar if she is saying that, because she was not even there when it happened and arrived much later. I have visited the same car wash for years and nothing like this had ever hap- pened before". Lawyer Lennox Vella insist- ed that exiting the yard without crossing both lanes is physically impossible due to the position of the car wash, describing Cutajar's manoeuvre as inherently danger- ous. The accused stressed that the lane was clear and that he would never have exited had he seen any approaching vehicle. Asked about the time it would take for this witness to reach the scene, the accused said he could not estimate distances in me- tres or kilometres. Lawyer Vella replied that that the stretch be- tween St Dorothy's and the car wash is relatively short, insisting that the witness clearly arrived on scene before he had exited the car and called for assistance, witness- ing the accident. The accused repeatedly denied this claim. At this point, Vella said he had no further questions for the wit- ness, saying it is clueless to keep questioning him. He also remind- ed the accused that CCTV footage existed, which clearly showed the motorcycle approaching as Cuta- jar exited the car wash, in a man- ner that effectively blocked both lanes. The defence subsequently closed its case. The case was adjourned to 12 June at 10:45am. Inspector Clayton Camilleri prosecuted. Lawyer Dominic Mi- callef was defence counsel to the accused. Lawyer Lennox Vella is representing the family of the vic- tim. Magistrate Leonard Caruana is presiding over the case. MAYA GALEA mgalea@mediatoday.com.mt Tourist handed suspended sentence for walking around naked in Isla as a joke AN 18-year-old tourist has been handed a suspended sentence and a fine for walking around naked in Isla as a joke on his final day in Malta. Sean Graham Purves, a Scot- tish tourist on holiday with a group of friends, was handed a one-month in prison, sus- pended for three-months, and a €100 fine after he was spot- ted walking naked on St Angelo Street, Isla, at around 10am. After being reported to the local council, CCTV footage of the incident was handed to the police. He was later arrested at the residence where he was seen walking into. He was charged with committing an offence against decency or morals by an act committed in a public place, and exposing himself na- ked. He pleaded guilty to all the charges against him. The defence explained that this was a "joke for their last day in Malta", and they meant no harm. The accused was scheduled to fly back to Scot- land at 1pm on Tuesday. While the court understood this was a joke, the accused must understand that while it was only for fun, he was sub- consciously agreeing to the consequences brought against the offence. The court also noted that whilst he is only 18, he must realise that from this age, one is tried as an adult in court. He was therefore sentenced to a one-month suspended sen- tence and a €100 fine. Magistrate Monica Vella pre- sided over the sitting. Legal aid lawyer Martina Herrera repre- sented the accused. Inspector Kurt Farrugia prosecuted. JULIA DOWLING jdowling@mediatoday.com.mt