Two eyewitnesses who took the witness stand in the compilation of evidence against a man accused of murder yesterday identified Melchior Spiteri as the person who killed Vittorio Cassone during a robbery in January 1993.
Melchior Spiteri, 31, from Cospicua, stands charged with the murder of the Italian chef in his shop in St Julian’s on 13 January 1993 at 6.30pm. He is also charged with armed robbery, holding Mr Cassone and other people against their will and with stealing money and items from the shop. Spiteri is also charged with possession of a firearm without a licence, firing the weapon in a residential area and relapsing.
Marco Russo, who worked at Chef D’Italie, and Rosemary Suda, a client who was shopping at the time of the hold-up, both testified that they recognised Spiteri as the person who shot Mr Cassone.
Mr Russo said that a man brandishing a pistol stormed into the shop in Birkirkara Road with a woman’s stocking covering his head. He said he was in the kitchen at the back of the shop at the time and that Mr Cassone had called him.
Like another witness who testified during the last sitting, Mr Russo said that the time he told police he was 99 per cent sure, he did so because he was scared to say he was 100 per cent certain.
Under cross examination, Mr Russo said he was 23 years old at the time. “At the time I was scared and told police I was 99 per cent certain it was him when I identified him during a number of identification parades. Now I’m still scared but I’m more mature. It was him,” he said pointing at the accused.
Mrs Suda said that the robber also stole her handbag but this was soon found and later returned. She said she found nothing missing from her handbag. Under cross examination, the woman admitted that during the ID parades, she identified three people who could have possibly been the robbers but in court yesterday, she said it was accused who had shot and killed Mr Cassone.
The case continues.
Police Inspector Chris Pullicino prosecuted while Dr Franco Debono appeared for Spiteri. Dr Bernard Grech appeared in parte civile for the Cassone family.