The St Julian’s man who lit a fire under construction workers and injured two police officials in a subsequent shootout had been arguing with the developer over the wall in question since at least 2021.

On Friday (today) morning, Malta was shocked when a video was shared showing a man throwing petrol and lighting a fireball under two construction workers suspended on a crane.

The situation became even more serious when the man opened fire on police who arrived on the site to investigate the incident. Two policemen were injured, with one, who was shot in the neck, fighting for his life at the time of writing.

WhosWho.mt can now reveal the identity of the shooter as John Agius, who is listed as the owner of the property in the area known as Ta' Giorni from which the shooting occurred, and who has left a paper trail of objections to the new construction dating back at least five years.

Documents submitted to the Building and Construction Authority and the Planning Authority by the architecture firm responsible for the site, MASSTUDIO, note a dispute with the neighbour over a common third-party wall.

The firm noted that “neighbour was not in agreement” with a proposal to reconstruct the wall, which was deemed dangerous. Accordingly, a separate wall was to be constructed within the development site.

A formal representation to the Planning Authority filed by Perit Lino Cachia on behalf of Mr Agius also noted that any excavation should be carried out at a distance from the adjoining property, as required by law.

When contacted by this newsroom, MASSTUDIO declined to comment about the incident, or about the history of tensions with Mr Agius.

The developer of the site is Neutic, a firm owned by Swiss nationals Frederic Villa and Denis Guerra.

Mr Villa likewise refrained from making any comments, citing an ongoing police investigation over the incident.

However, he admitted to being “under shock” over the dramatic escalation in the dispute.

Mr Villa has previously made headlines after he was placed under sanctions by Ukraine and the USA for providing “material support” to Russia’s war efforts in Ukraine.

Attempts to reach the lead contractor were not successful.