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maltatoday, SUNDAY, 27 SEPTEMBER 2015 News 7 MATTHEW VELLA ONE of the trustees of the La Salle schools in Malta has denied using his influence to favour his daughter's promotion to a sec- ondary school position. Former Malta Enterprise chair- man Lawrence Zammit told MaltaToday that teachers' union MUT's allegations that he used his position to secure a perma- nent teaching post for his daugh- ter – a supply teacher – were "false". It was one of the complaints that the MUT took to Archbishop Charles Scicluna in denouncing a series of abusive recruitments taking place in church schools. "It is false. I did not speak to an- yone about it, and I did not exert any pressure on any such recruit- ment of teachers," Zammit told MaltaToday. Zammit's daughter was for- merly a supply teacher of P.E. for Stella Maris College's primary school in the 2014-15 year, be- fore being formally employed as secondary school teacher for P.E. – as well as an assistant to the sci- ence teacher – for the early forms for the 2015-16 scholastic year. The union however complained that the school had just termi- nated a fully-qualified teacher of P.E. right before the start of the scholastic year, while still in his one-year probation "without any reason" and in spite of "positive feedback related to his perform- ance." The union said it was the col- lege's legal right to terminate the teacher's position while on pro- bation. But it questioned the fact that the teacher – a B.Ed graduate in physical education also pursu- ing his Masters – was replaced by a graduate with a degree in dance studies, suggesting she was not the most suitably qualified to take the full-time position. "I am unaware of this teacher's [predicament] but I don't think we can make any link between one and the other," Zammit said of the union's claims, again deny- ing having had any say in Stella Maris's recruitment decision. "On this, the union's claims are way off-target." The college's call for recruit- ment was issued in June 2015 while the P.E. teacher was still in employment. "The termination was [then] so late that other calls were all closed by the time this teacher became unemployed," the union complained in a state- ment it posted on its website. Earlier in the week, the MUT said it held a positive meeting with the Archbishop after having flagged a series of abusive recruit- ment policies by Church schools, presenting Scicluna with their suggestions. The union complained of "shambolic practices that are not only a shame on those schools and their leaders but also a far cry from the 'Catholic practice' being suddenly expected from Church school teachers." Their complaints in turn brought on accusations from the Church Schools Association, which groups directors and heads of church schools, of "bullying" towards the Secretariat for Cath- olic Education. The MUT however claims that teachers have been blatantly sin- gled out during interviews be- cause of their gender, others told they only wanted to employ male teachers and others who had their job terminated for no apparent reason "except perhaps because the post was being reserved for someone else". Accused 'tricked' into giving robber lift Jurors taken on site of 2009 Birkirkara armed robbery MATTHEW AGIUS THE trial by jury of Matthew Miz- zi, the alleged getaway car driver in a 2009 armed robbery by Jonathan Coleiro, entered its fourth day with jurors taken on the site of the hold-up yesterday. Mizzi, 29 of Cospicua, is accused of driving the car into which Co- leiro sped off after wounding a Birkikara shopkeeper during a hold-up. Jurors were told yesterday by a CID police officer that it was Co- leiro who said Mizzi had procured him the weapon. But Mizzi's lawyers insisted that the hold-up was Coleiro's doing, having taken advantage of Mizzi's heroin withdrawal symptoms to trick him into giving him a lift to the shop. CID Officer Joe Borg testified on Saturday, saying Mizzi's first version of events had been that he was parked in Birkirkara near Andrew's bar, waiting for a girl when, all of a sudden a masked, armed man ordered him to drive off. Mizzi could not recall the girl's name. "Shortly afterwards Mizzi changed his version, adding that as he drove off the man removed his balaclava," Borg said. "But he wouldn't identify the person as he was scared of him." Then after being questioned by inspector Keith Arnaud, Mizzi identified Coleiro as the robber, and that he dropped him off at Valley Road before making a bee- line to the Birkirkara police sta- tion to report the robbery. Borg also said Mizzi had claimed he met Coleiro in Cospicua, who asked him for a lift to Birkirkara. He described Mizzi's demeanour under interrogation as "normal, very calm" but that he refused to swear his version under oath when the magistrate arrived. Coleiro was then arrested in Cospicua on 13 April, 2009. Borg recounted hearing people in the slum apartment where they found Coleiro, trying to escape as they made their way up the stairs. "As I entered the first room, I came face to face with Coleiro. I drew my gun and ordered him to freeze, but Coleiro paid me no heed. I holstered my weapon as I had to use some force to subdue him. I placed him face down and hand- cuffed his hands behind his back." The evening after his arrest, Co- leiro took police to the Foss area at the Verdala bastions, where he had buried the weapon. "Inspector Arnaud warned him several times that he had already been charged and that it was pointless for him to talk to the police, but Coleiro was adamant. He said, 'I'll shoulder my respon- sibility but not others',' and identi- fied Mizzi as having given him the weapon Borg was cross-examined by defence counsel Michael Sciriha, saying he was not always present during the taking of statements from the accused, as he was look- ing up further information whilst the interrogation was underway. "What is interesting is this," the lawyer noted. "Everyone is going in and out doing homework and what-not, but all your versions are the same, practically word-for- word." The lawyer pointed out that Borg had not told the jury that Mizzi and Coleiro were brought face to face at the depot, to which Borg replied that he was not present for the confrontation. "All I am testifying on is what I heard in my presence and I don't need to speculate on what happened when I wasn't there." Eyewitnesses say what happened during Mizzi's arrest Renald Grech, who was inside the Cospicua slum at the time of Coleiro's arrest, also testi- fied yesterday. He was already inside the apartment with another eyewitness, Bradley Carabott, when Coleiro came in. "He was drunk or some- thing, talking nonsense and mumbling... soon afterwards, the police arrived." "We took fright when [the po- lice] forced the door open... we moved out of the room... I went upstairs," Grech said of the raid. He could not remember Carabott hiding in the ward- robe during the raid. "I think someone was shot because the police were demanding Coleiro that he give them the gun." Carabott also testified, telling the court he only knew Coleiro by sight. "I think he was called Jonathan... If I remember cor- rectly, Jonathan was in shock," he said of the moment Coleiro came into the Cospicua apart- ment. "I couldn't understand what he was saying. He wasn't speaking in full sentences, like he was drunk. He mentioned 'Birkirkara,' 'police' and 'they haven't come for me yet'." The trial resumes on Monday. Lawyers Elaine Mercieca and Ann Marie Cutajar from the office of the Attorney General are prosecuting, whilst lawyers Michael Sciriha, Lucio Sciriha and Christopher Chircop are defence counsel. Trustee denies union claims of 'favouritism' Accused Matthew Mizzi (right) seen with his defence team (from left) Lucio Sciriha, Christopher Chircop and Michael Sciriha PHOTOGRAPHY BY CHRIS MANGION