UPDATED: Two young men and a young woman have been denied bail following comments they made on Facebook hours after the hit-and-run attack on police officer Simon Schembri.

21-year-old Kylie Cutajar from Ħamrun, 28-year-old Josef D’Amato from Marsa and 28-year-old Ritmark Borg from Paola have been accused with inciting violence, inciting people to commit crimes, and misusing electronic equipment.  

All three pleaded not guilty to the accusations.

While sending the three youths to be locked up, Magistrate Joe Mifsud said that he wanted to send a clear signal to society that the Maltese police force should have as much protection as possible, and no-one has the right to mock the police. He said policemen leave their house every day to do their work and all they want to do is return home safe and sound. 

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The three accused people had posted comments making light of the incident, and Kylie Cutajar had asked: “Do the authorities treat citizens with the same kind of respect they’re expecting back?”

She was called out online, with many people condemning her and her friends callous comments, forcing Cutajar to try to clarify

Kylie Cutajar’s post clarifying her comments

A legal expert told Lovin Malta that their comments could very well be classified as hate speech since they can be found to incite violence. The court will now assess the three individuals’ comments.

The comments were made in the wake of a hit-and-run attack early Tuesday morning.

This comes after Police Union chief Sandro Camilleri raised the alarm on how Maltese police were being treated by society.

“The situation for police officers has become ridiculous,” Camilleri said. “We are witnessing a rise in arrogance across Maltese society. Everybody wants to curse and offend nowadays, and you can’t even honk your horn without someone coming out of their car to attack you. This doesn’t only impact police officers, but we experience this on a daily basis.”

Police officer Simon Schembri is currently recovering in hospital after being dragged for metres on the bonnet of an unlicensed grey Mercedes Benz, before having his body dropped on the street, run over, and left for dead.

He received multiple serious injuries, included a collapsed lung, but his condition has stabilised.

The underage driver responsible for the hit-and-run has a troubled past and was known to police. He has pleaded not guilty to the charges.

Should the teenagers face court over their comments?

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Johnathan Cilia

Johnathan is an award-winning Maltese journalist interested in social justice, politics, minority issues, music and food. Follow him at @supreofficialmt on Instagram, and send him news, food and music stories at [email protected]