The defence lawyer for a man accused of strangling his wife to death said it was "physically impossible" for his 60 kilogramme client to have overpowered his former spouse, who he described as having a "big frame."

The man -Nizar El-Gadi – is facing a trial by jury for the voluntary homicide of his wife, Margaret Mifsud, who is survived by their two children.

Dr Mifsud was found strangled to death in her car in a lay-by in Bahar ic-Caghaq on 19 April 2012, after a night out with work colleagues.

Defence lawyer Martin Testaferrata Moroni Viani argued that the murder was committed by a much bigger man, whilst beckoning to his client to stand up and show his medium stature to the jurors.

Dr Viani made reference to the testimony given by forensics expert Mario Scerri, who testified that Dr Mifsud trusted her aggressor since no signs were found that she resisted him even though her aggressor pinned her down and sat on her chest.

“She was no angel. She died in a very particular position. She was a confused woman. She still kissed my client and did other things with him. They [the prosecution] do not have a solid case. This is very dangerous.”

“Just for argument’s sake let us say my client was with her doing these things described by [forensics expect] Mario Scerri. The truth is that Dr Margaret Mifsud was doing these things, but not with my 60 kilogramme client. She was not a small woman, she had a big frame...

“60 kilogrammes is not a lot. If you are pinning someone down and being strangled you will manage to overcome those 60 kilogrammes. This crime was committed by someone bigger, not my client.

“I do not know who the aggressor is, my brief is to show that my client is not guilty.

“What we know for sure is that my client was not with her. It was physically impossible for him to have done it,” Dr Viani argued.

On the "predominant" presence of his client's DNA on Dr Mifsud's fingernails, Dr Viani put this down to the short tryst between the two on the night she was murdered.

Dr Viani said call and text message logs show that Dr Mifsud and Mr El-Gadi were in the vicinity of each other between 8:01pm and 8:10pm, leading credence to his client's story that they met up briefly that night.

Dr Viani said the car used by Dr Mifsud after the tryst had been driven by his client a few days before, so some of the DNA on Dr Mifsud would also have come from there.

The lawyer also hit out at the way DNA expert Marisa Cassar went about her business.

“Marisa Cassar was selective. Someone must have told her to be so. All she looked for was the DNA of Dr Mifsud and Mr El-Gadi.”

He accused the prosecution of "dressing up" certain evidence, and questioned how Mr El-Gadi could have followed the murder victim to Xemxija where she met with colleagues, without anyone seeing him.

Dr Viani also questioned the accuracy of mobile phone traces showing his client was in the vicinity of Xemxija that night.

He said the radio tower that picked up Mr El-Gadi is in Bugibba, and covers a very large zone.

“It is a large area. Where was he? We do not know.”

Dr Viani said his client had absolutely no motive to kill Dr Mifsud, and dismissed a text message sent by the murder victim on the day, in which she asked Mr El-Gadi to stop harassing her.

He pointed out their two children testified in court that the pair had kissed just days before the murder.

“Maybe she was confused, maybe she did not want him any more, but she was undecided. If you love a person it is normal to be angry at them at times.

“The call profiles show she always answered him. She could have put her mobile on silent [on the night of the murder.] Are we sure she turned off her mobile because of him? I do not think so. There are some unidentified calls that very day that were not answered.

“The prosecution is going down a dangerous road, the focus is just on Mr El-Gadi, the proof is being tailored towards that.”

Dr Viani concluded with a bold plea to jurors, asking them to return a unanimous not-guilty verdict.

“Send a message to the competent authorities that you are not satisfied with this. Send a message. This case should never have even made its way before you,” he said.