Youth in Paceville knuckleduster fight pleads not guilty

A teenager involved in two separate fights while on a night out in Paceville last week was granted bail after pleading not guilty on his arraignment on Thursday. Twain Sciberras, a 19-year-old from Birżebbuġa, was accused of grievously injuring a bouncer supervising a nightclub on December 6, the incident having been captured on CCTV. Prosecuting Inspector Leeroy Balzan Engerer explained how the youth had allegedly been armed with a brass knuckleduster when the fight with the bouncer broke out.  Once outside the club, the same teenager allegedly got involved in another fight with another man, who also ended up suffering grievous injuries. The youth was charged with grievously injuring both men without intending to kill or endanger their life, threatening and insulting the victims, bearing a weapon without the necessary police licence, as well as breaching the peace. When making submissions on bail, defence lawyers Franco Debono and Amadeus Cachia argued that besides the presumption of innocence, the accused had an almost clean record. Moreover, the court could bar him from approaching his alleged victims if bail were to be granted. After hearing submissions by both parties, the...