Delivery driver, Transport Malta official charged with involuntary homicide<\/p>\n
A delivery driver and a Transport Malta official have pleaded not guilty to the involuntary homicide of an elderly woman who was struck by a van during roadworks in August 2024.<\/p>\n
A 34-year-old driver and a government transport official appeared in court on Monday morning to face charges connected to the death of 77-year-old Carmen Buttigieg. <\/p>\n
The victim was certified dead at the scene after being hit by an Isuzu van in Triq Isqof Scicluna, Qormi, on the afternoon of 27 August, 2024.<\/p>\n
Francis Degiorgio, who was behind the wheel of the Isuzu NQR at the time of the accident, and Jesmond Muscat, 56, acting in his capacity as a Transport Malta official on duty, were both charged with involuntarily causing the death through negligence. <\/p>\n
Degiorgio is also facing a separate charge for reckless driving.<\/p>\n
The incident occurred near a well-known bakery in an area where roadworks were actively being carried out.<\/p>\n
At the time of the crash, the driver was taken to Mater Dei Hospital for observation, while a magisterial inquiry was immediately launched into the fatality, which was the second road death recorded that day.<\/p>\n
On Monday, the first court hearing before Magistrate Marse-Ann Farrugia was briefly delayed when it emerged that neither the prosecution nor the defence were prepared to present evidence during the hour the court had allocated. <\/p>\n
The case will continue being heard in October. <\/p>\n
The prosecution is being led by Attorney General lawyers Ramon Bonett Sladden and Jurgen Dalli, assisted by Inspector Wayne Bonello.<\/p>\n
Lawyer Nikolai Bugeja and Alexandr Boiciuc appeared for the accused. <\/p>\n
Lawyers Franco Debono and Marion Camilleri are appearing for the victim’s family.<\/p>\n