A licensed fireworks operator has been acquitted over a 2023 Valletta display after prosecutors failed to prove he breached his licence conditions.

Bernard David Cauchi was charged with failing to clean up after a fireworks display and failing, as holder of the relevant fireworks licence, to ensure that he was following restrictions or conditions attached to the license.

On 30 September, the court acquitted Cauchi after concluding that the prosecution failed to prove either of the two regulatory breaches he was charged with.

The case arose on 10 June 2023 after Reuben Grima complained about fireworks set up near the Siege Bell monument around Valletta's Bocci Club at around 8:40pm. The display was tied to a wedding at the Mediterranean Conference Centre.

Grima explained that the display was set up in a public garden and close to a children's playground, but there seemed to be no warning signs or visible safety measures.

Allegedly, a man at the scene told him that fireworks would be set off at 9pm, claiming responsibility for the fireworks in question along with two other sets.

Cauchi, however, claimed to have a Licence A and police permit granting him permission to set up the fireworks, that they were placed roughly 30 minutes before firing, and that a second licensed person was present watching them.

He also said people were warned to clean the area before ignition and that the area was swept after the fireworks went off above the garden.

On the first charge, failing to clean up after a fireworks display, the court said there was no evidence that Cauchi failed to clear the area after the fireworks went off.

It explained that Grima's complaint concerned what he observed before the display rather than leftover debris or unexploded fireworks left behind afterwards.

The investigating officer also had no evidence that leftover fireworks or waste was found in the area.

Turning to the second charge of failing to follow obligations as a license holder, the court also concluded that it had not been sufficiently proved.

He was found not guilty after the court agreed with the defence's argument that the prosecution failed to clearly point out what license condition Cauchi had allegedly breached.

Instead, according to the court, evidence showed that Cauchi was properly licensed, had the required insurance, had obtained permission or received no objection from Valletta St Paul's Bocci Club to use its pitch for the display, and was using the location indicated on the site plan.

On top of this, Grima could not identify Cauchi as the man he had spoken to beside the fireworks display on the day of the incident. Magistrate Nadine Sant Lia described that failure as dealing a "fatal blow" to the prosecution.

The court found Cauchi not guilty on both charges and cleared him of all criminal liability.

Defence lawyer Matthew Xuereb represented the accused.