Swieqi contractor says man in viral site row was a neighbour

The statement, reported by Lovin Malta, came after footage circulated showing a heated argument at the site and a man appearing to throw an object toward a female resident who was filming. The video was shared by Swieqi deputy mayor Jordan Galea Pace, who publicly condemned the behaviour.

The contractor’s response is specific and fairly limited. It does not explain the wider confrontation. It says the identity of the man has been wrongly assumed.

“The individual seen behaving aggressively in the video is not an employee or representative of our company,” the company said, according to the report. It added that he was “a neighbour who entered our construction site without authorisation or consent.”

That distinction is the whole point of the statement. The company is not denying the scene in the footage looked ugly; it is denying that the person at the centre of it was acting for the company.

It also said it does not condone aggressive, threatening or inappropriate behaviour “under any circumstances” and that such conduct does not reflect its values or professional standards.

Lovin Malta reported that the statement was issued by Alexander Aquilina, director of A.Aquilina Building Contractors Ltd. On the supplied record, that is as far as the confirmed facts go: a video, a public backlash, and a contractor insisting the man in it was a neighbour rather than part of its workforce.