Man who witnessed Dembska murder thought Abner was doing push-ups

Abner Aquilina follows court case via video link due to being quarantined

Jan 21 2022

The beginning of the compilation of evidence against Abner Aquilina for the murder and rape of Paulina Dembska kicked off today.

However, the suspect followed the court case via a video link due to being placed in quarantine and thus not being able to present in court. The 20-year-old from Żejtun denies attacking and killing Dembska, 29, at Independence Gardens on January 2nd.

As the court case went on, it was revealed that a man is believed to have witnessed the rape of Paulina, but thought he saw a man doing push-ups. The man was allegedly walking early on in the morning when he saw a man who he assumed was doing push-ups.

He then saw a pair of woman’s legs beneath him, noticing as well that the man had his trousers down. No sounds were being made by either person, with the man himself listening to the rosary on RTK and thus couldn’t hear very well.

Further details also emerged, revealing that he followed two men prior to murdering Dembska, placing a key between his knuckles when approaching them and that he related to the main character of ‘A Clockwork Orange.’

When asked about how he killed Dembska, Aquilina made noises and pointed towards his knees and the bottom of his shoe. He also claimed that he didn’t ‘want to hurt [Dembska] that much.’

During the interrogation, Aquilina stated that he heard voices from the devil on the night of the murder. He was later found in the Balluta church causing a commotion. Investigations had stopped after Aquilina was admitted to Mount Carmel.

According to court reporting, Aquilina’s quarantine was confirmed today at around 10:23 am, with Abner joining via the link a few minutes before. The case is ongoing with new details emerging.

The case is set to continue on February 4th, with the magistrate checking the medical certificate and stating that Abner is due to be out of quarantine on January 27th. The next date will b Friday February 4th.

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Photo Source: Kamra tal-Periti

Petition launched calling for standing weddings

Jan 21 2022

A petition was launched appealing for the Maltese government and health authorities to review the current COVID-19 regulations which concern weddings.

At present, weddings can only take place if guests are all seated, but a petition by Danielle Scerri seeks to change all this. She said that the rules are unfair for couples as they are having to spend more money for an un-ideal wedding.

She stated that while restaurants and other establishments have been given the freedom to accommodate more people and events during the pandemic, the regulations on weddings have remained unchanged for a long period of time.

Scerri appealed to have more feasible options to allow non-seated weddings, such as the use of PCR tests for the unvaccinated. She said that having seated weddings does not guarantee an exemption for virus infection.

The petition on change.org is aiming to reach 2,500 signatures, and it has currently amassed around 2,380 signatures as of time of writing.

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No amount of alcohol is good for the heart says report – but critics disagree

Jan 21 2022

The World Heart Federation released a policy brief on Thursday stating, in a rather bold move, that no amount of alcohol is good for the heart.

‘At the World Heart Federation, we decided that it was imperative that we speak up about alcohol and the damages to health as well as the social and economic harms, because there is an impression in the population in general, and even among health care professionals, that it is good for the heart’ said Beatriz Champagne, chair of the advocacy committee that produced the report.

Champagne continued on to say that alcohol is not good for the heart, and that ‘evidence has increasingly shown that there is no level of alcohol consumption that is safe for health.’

The comments and report were met by swift criticism, disputing the federation’s stance. Many critics stated that studies which show a small benefit to some heart conditions were being ignored.

David Spiegelhalter, a Winton Professor for the Public Understanding of Risk at the University of Cambridge, stated that one study of the risks of alcohol was extensively used in the WHF brief, but was seriously misrepresented and selectively reported.

Another professor, Emmanuela Gakidou, said that ‘given the WHF report references this paper, it is really odd that their conclusion is that no amount of alcohol is good for the heart.’

In response, Champagne sent CNN a statement, replying that while they stand by their key messages, ‘it is helpful to know that the wording of parts of the policy brief can give rise to misunderstandings.’

However, studies which show a ‘significant cardio-protective effect of alcohol consumption’ have been by-and-large inconsistent, observational, funded by the alcohol industry and/or not subject to randomised control.

Furthermore, any ‘potential cardio-protective effect is negated by the well-documented risks and harms, rendering our judgement that no amount of consumption can be considered good for heart health’

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Photo Source: Harvard Health, The Telegraph

Bernard Grech calls for unity with workers to save Air Malta

Jan 21 2022

Opposition Leader Bernard Grech has issued a call to ‘work together’ with Air Malta’s worker representatives to save the airline.

The Nationalist Party leader on Thursday appealed for the collective effort during a meeting with unions representing the employees, following a government announcement last week that it would be cutting the workforce by half from 890 to 420.

In a statement outlining his call, Grech said that ‘we need to see how to move forward. Lets work together in order not to lose Air Malta. The Nationalist Party has a political duty to not lose the nation al airline because, at the end of the day, it is the workers, our economy and the entire country who will suffer.’

The statement revealed that the Opposition felt the need to meet the unions because they felt like they need a party which listens to them and understands their current plight.

During the meeting, Grech said that the Nationalist Party had a plan for Air Malta – a plan that started to work but the Labour Party abandoned. ’All this means that we need to look at this plan and see the realities of today in order to find an alternative to ensure the workers and their families that they have a future.’

The Opposition leader said that this situation needs to be solved as quickly as possible, not just for the work itself but also for the passion the employees showed their employment. ‘We cannot lose AirMalta because it is an important flag for our country and it is indispensable on various levels of our economy.’

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Photo Source: Bernard Grech FB, Nationalist Party Communications, @aeronited (Air Malta FB)