A court today heard Daniel Mainwaring, the son of Yana Mintoff Bland, recall the instance when Gheorghe Popa stabbed him with a blade during the events which took place on 24 October 2016. 

Mr Popa is charged with attempting to cause grievous injury to both Yana Mintoff Bland, aged 65, and her 35-year-old son Daniel Mainwaring, and also with slightly injuring them. He was also charged with being in possession of a knife, making verbal threats against Yana Mintoff Bland, harassment, causing her fear, arson and causing criminal damage.

Mr Popa was also found with stab wounds when he was located in a tree near Ms Mintoff Bland’s home.

The court would later be told by Dr Mario Schembri, a forensic expert, that Mr Popa’s stab wounds to the abdomen were most likely self-inflicted due to their concentrated area and angulation. On Ms Mintoff Bland and Mr Mainwaring, Dr Schembri said that while no person could ever fully rule out a self-inflicted wound, the wounds appeared to be committed by a person.

He also said that Ms Mintoff held a stab wounds to the chest, and defensive wounds to her left and right hands. 

Proceedings began with Mr Mainwaring telling court that he and his mother had returned home after going out for dinner with his sister between 7pm and 9pm. Upon arrival he smoked a cigarette while playing an instrument on the balcony of his residence. 

The house (which is located in Tarxien), he explained, is split up into two residences which are separated by a garden. Mr Mainwaring along with two friends and his girlfriend live in one of the residence. That residence belonged to his grandfather. The other residence is occupied by his mother. 

He told the court that as he was on the balcony he heard loud voices and walked towards his mother’s house. He then entered the house through a screendoor leading into the garden. He saw his mother gasping for breath while Mr Papou was on top of her at the bottom of the staircase in the residence. He said that Mr Popa kept on asking Ms Mintoff Bland “Who is he?” to which Ms Mintoff Bland continuously replied “There is nobody”.

He then ran towards him which announced himself to Gheorghe, who then lunged at him, he explained.

“I saw my mum lying on her back, and it was clear he was on top of her,” he said.

“Even though it was dark I saw the reflection of a large silver blade, I lifted my leg to protect my stomach, and so he stabbed he twice in my left thigh,” he added.

Following the stabbing, he said, his initial reaction was instinctive and he started to leave the way he had come in.  He then walked two metres outside of the house, where he began to process what had happened. He went on to say that he released a loud scream.

He then ran back in, where he met his mother, who he said must have broken free when Mr Popa lunged at him. 

Mr Mainwaring and his mother then proceeded to make their way to the other residence, were he realised she had been grievously harmed.

“She was an intense state of shock so I wrapped my arm around her,” he said.

He then called out to his friends who were in the house and went to the polyclinic. 

He told the court, which is presided over by Magistrate Joseph Mifsud, that he did not know much of their relationship, as it was “her business”. He did say that he knew they argued a lot and that his mother had informed him and his friends that their relationship had ended and that if he came to the house not to let him in. 

Anna Marinovic, the girlfriend of Mr Mainwaring and resident at his house, was next to testify and she informed the court  that a week prior to the incident she witnessed a violent encounter between Ms Mintoff and Mr Popa. She said that while picking lemons in the garden with a friend they saw Ms Mintoff and Mr Popa arguing over the termination of their relationship. Mr Popa then pushed himself against Ms Mintoff, she claimed.

Ms Marinovic and her friend then went inside to stop the altercation. Once, they stopped, the four of them had a drink on the table. Mr Popa sat silently she said.

Ms Mintoff Bland would go on to tell Ms Marinovic not to let Mr Popa inside again.

However, Ms Marinovic admitted that they did once let him in, as he resisted when they refused his entry. She said that they did argue but nothing serious happened.

On 24 October, she recalled how she heard them arguing “as always”. She then saw Mr Mainwaring in the balcony upstairs, and while she had dinner she heard Mr Mainwaring screaming loudly. She then ran outside and saw them running towards her.

“I saw she had a long cut on her chest, and I don’t know how but I already knew something bad had happened,” she said. 

Mark Napier, from Kalkara, lived with Mr Mainwaring at the time of the attack. He told the court that while he was getting olives from the olive tree, he noticed Mr Mainwaring shouting. 

“We ran towards him and we saw him carrying Yana,” he said. 

After assisting in taking his friend and his friend’s mother to the polyclinic, he returned to the property with Mr Aaron Attard, another friend who lived at the residence. 

He said that there were police telling Mr Popa to exit the residence. Then, he explained, the fire within the building broke the glass of the window on the second storey. He then proceeded to contact the fire department. 

Dr Daniel Vella, a court expert, explained that the fire originated from the living room, on one of two sofas and table behind it which held some appliances.

“It can be be said that the appliances potentially started the fire. However, I exclude this completely as the sockets were not completely burned as they would be if the fire began from the electrical appliance.”

He also said that the sofas are flammable so they could be easily ignited with just a lighter. 

When asked by Dr Joe Giglio, appearing for the Parte Civile - Yana Mintoff Bland and her son - whether or not he saw the accused, Mr Napier said “I did not see the accused. I know that they found him the tree later, but then I could not see him”.

Mr Attard, recounted the same events as both Ms Marinovic and Mr Napier did before. He did identify that the tree in which Mr Papou was found was in front of the door of Ms Mintoff Bland’s residence and it the same size as the property. 

The defence is represented by lawyer Benjamin Valenzia.