The man accused of murdering Baron Sant Cassia in October 1988 was yesterday again refused bail and was remanded in custody.

Carmelo Camilleri, 51, from Mosta, is being charged with shooting Baron Frank Sant Cassia, 68, dead on the evening of 27 October 1988 outside his home, Castello Zamitello, in Mgarr. He is also being accused of the illegal possession of a firearm.

Following previous court sittings, the court had already ruled that there was enough prima facie evidence for a bill of indictment to be issued against Mr Camilleri and magistrate Quintano had already rejected the man’s plea for bail.

In a fresh attempt for his client to be granted bail, his defence lawyers Edward Gatt and Anglu Farrugia, said that now that the prosecution had declared that there was enough evidence for a bill of indictment to be issued, their client should be granted bail so that he can continue working. The prosecution objected to the request on the grounds that the case was an important one.

The court has heard that a second person is also being investigated in connection with this murder case. It is understood that the man is Anglu Muscat, of Mgarr, who was mentioned by the accused as the person who had hired him to murder Baron Sant Cassia and promised him Lm11,000 for the job. The accused told police that he was paid Lm6,000 after killing the baron but was never handed the rest of the money. Mr Muscat had been questioned by police in 1988 and was subsequently released.

The autopsy on Baron Sant Cassia’s corpse revealed that a shotgun wound at the back of his head had caused his death.