Ah, the golden years of Mintoff – ara kemm kien helu t-tifel tas-seftura tieghu
Il-Fusellu: he forced a policeman to give him a public blow-job at gunpoint.
John Bondin, Il-Fusellu, was from Bormla and Belti stock, but he preferred to stick around Sliema and St Julian’s, where he was a near-permanent fixture in his cream Rolls Royce.
One of my contemporaries has just sent in this charming reminiscence.
He seems to have inherited/imbibed his complicated sexuality and his equation of sex with dominance from the man whose floors his mother washed.
I clearly remember one evening when along with friends we went to Tigulio (ex skating rink – don’t know what it is now) and witnessed Fusellu forcing a police officer (a sergeant I think he was) to perform oral sex on him just because he was politely asked not to cause trouble that evening because they were tired.
This he forced him to do with an automatic pistol pressed to his temple.
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And the time he forced a guy to strip on the dance floor at Vibes? Roll on the reliving of the golden years….
Splendid.
Fifty Shades of Red taht il-labour.
The magistrate Flores at that time was notorious because he gave Fusellu about 20 Articolo 23 cautions.
Magistrate Flores at that time was notorious because he gave Fusellu about 20 Articolo 23 cautions.
Jesus, I thought the situation in Zurrieq was bad.
The young voters need to understand what it was like living under their shadow.
A bit like resigning oneself to the Camorra, which incidentally, shares the same rituals, lingo, overwrought drama and violent undertones.
What are you trying to say, you are really mad with hatred towards this man.
Are you oozing with love for him, Carmel?
Please please please do not raise the memory of this utter scum.
Fusellu’s mother, Mrs Bondin, had a kiosk by the Valletta gate after ousting another owner in place in the fashion of the Bonello brothers demise in favour of the Joe Pace Magic Kiosk in Sliema.
Fusellu sold his contraband Mars bars there for big money in those golden days when the government banned chocolate.
Look at the appalling comments beneath this story, backing Joe Grima for calling Fr Lucie Smith a ‘pedophile’ and telling him ‘Fuck off Father’:
http://www.maltatoday.com.mt/en/newsdetails/news/national/Joe-Grima-s-abusive-rant-over-Mintoff-obituary-20120827
How can we exclude that Joe Grima himself is behind those comments?
And here is another echo from the Fusellu story that people may have forgotten. It is fascinating to see just how many wheels within wheels this story has!
http://www.independent.com.mt/news.asp?newsitemid=77602
But then again as the housewife said ‘din gidba ohra min ta’ Def’
Fusellu was another chip off the old block. Yana and Anne owe Louis Bartolo a great deal.
I remember hearing a story that once il-Fusellu went to park his car next to the sea in Valletta and when he could not find a parking place close enough, he just released the hand brake of one of the cars which went straight into the sea so that he could park his car; this in full view of two policemen.
H
He was also known for leaving his car parked across a road in Sliema, blocking traffic completely – u kulhadd beza’ jmissu.
There’s a court report about a ruckus involving il-Fusellu. He butted into in a fight between two men involving a girl. “Fuq din qed tiggieldu” and put his hand on her top which ‘came off in his hand’.
Once an arsehole, always an arsehole. Now they’re both dead arseholes, and may their arseholes rot in hell along with the rest of them.
Daphne is this story true?
Please tell us more stories. They are very interesting. By the way I am wasting precious hours reading your blogs and the comments that come after. Very interesting. Curiosity killed the cat.
[Daphne – Why ‘wasting’? It’s time very well spent. It means you come out the other end better informed than before.]
Keep them coming Dephne, if you go out for election i will vote for you. As a matter of fact I will also canvas for you.
And now Fusellu has met his maker, and may they both rot in hell.
Tmorrux tibilghu l-ostja inthom!!! Din il-hdura kollha! Misskhom tisthu!
oh my the more i read the more i thank god i was not around during all of this!! you just reminded me also of zeppi il haffi though, what are your views no his presidential pardon? we all know you are in favour of PN, but lets face it corruption is corruption no matter which side it’s coming from……
[Daphne – Is anyone going to bother replying to this one? Turning state evidence = massive, rampant, criminal abuse over 16 years.]
A fungus. No one who reasons like that could possibly be real. He should sign up here:
http://bonehead.lerman.biz/php/SignsOfUnintelligentLife.php
The Żeppi l-Ħafi case needs answering too at some point. Nothing ‘unintelligent’ about it.
Give us more stories, Daphne….all I ever hear was Mintoff did lots of good….but God forbid we are ever under Labour government again! The younger population is always curious on exactly what went on…it’s confusing!
What does Fusellu translate as please?
Just out of curiosity – where did Mintoff get those buckles?
My wife and I knew Fusellu personally.
We both worked at the reception at the exclusive ‘Club 47’ which was one of the only nightclubs allowed to operate in those days.
It was owned by Jean and Ray Agius, the Soho kings. Jean was a very close friend of Mintoff’s (The cream Bentley was actually Jean’s ).
[Daphne – That’s right. It was a Bentley, not a Rolls – parked outside Caffe Roma every day.]
Il-Fusellu was a regular at ’47’.
We obviously became acquaintences and he seemed to have taken a liking to us (though more to my wife I suspect) and was always friendly towards us.
He did not look like your usual thug and in fact was usually smartly dressed and quite polite.
It was obvious that he had immense power and people were intimidated by his presence as he could suddenly ‘flip’ into a manic rage and he was capable of anything.
He always carried a firearm of some sort and he would often put it on the bar while he sat with friends.
My wife and I were present for quite a few incidents similar to the ones you mention and it was like something out of a Mafia movie, and often the police were present but looked on.
He was truely ‘untouchable’ but……as it turned out, not entirely unstoppable.
John Bondin aka il-Fusellu and Jean Agius were two of six then youths charged with having grieviously injured four men serving on HMS Hermes with a sharp and pointed instrument and other objects during a brawl.
They were also charged with having made violent and unauthorized entry into Sacha Night Club in Paceville after closing hours and causing damage inside the club and disturbing the public peace. John Bondin aka il-Fusellu was also charged with contravening a probation order.
This was in retaliation against il-Fusellu and friend having been thrown out of the night club for causing trouble. They returned with another four friends, pushed their way in and provoked a brawl by breaking a stool over a man’s head. Patrick Holland was among the defence counsel when the youths were prosecuted.
This was in 1970, when the club owner could call the police and il-Fusellu, Jean Agius & Co would run away.
Then Mintoff became Prime Minister, heralding 16 years of hell, Patrick Holland became (ahem) minister of trade, il-Fusellu became untouchable bribe broker-in-chief, and the police force became a tool of tyranny spawning the Inspector with current pretensions to the Ministry of Justice and Home Affairs.
Il-Fusellu was a regular at the Astra Hotel parapet too, wasn’t he? That’s where Time Square pub in Sliema’s Ghar id-Dud area is now.
Not one for hanging out in the village bar, was he? He seems to have preferred to be among the tal-pepe’ crowd.
When all imported items needed to have an import licence, and Patrick Holland was minister of trade, We used to queue for hours on end, near Victoria Gate, where there was a football pitch.
One morning on my arrival, I saw an ambulance going out from the pitch, and asked what happened.
I was told that a lawyer by the name of Ettore Lucia had been beaten up by Fusellu for complaining about the queues and the delays.
Many times the import licence was refused for those not paying bribes to Fusellu.
I thought it was common knowledge that if you were on the ‘other side’ in those days and wanted an import licence there was a minimum 5-10% per container to be paid to the Patrick Holland / Joe Zammit (l-Ayatollah) etc consortium.. and if you didn’t.. well, life for all around you became hell on earth with different sorts of extended paybacks.
nahseb ghandek zball dphne il fusellu ma kienx min bormla .dak kien mil belt
[Daphne – Naf, qalbi. Il-familja tieghi mil-Belt ukoll.]
Reply to Mr A Charles.
Mr Justice Flores was a judge and not a magistrate. Fusellu never appeared before him, but before another judge, retired but still alive.
Mintoff was always a one man band he thinks, acts and delivers that which he wants and not what is good for the maltese, or even his own party.
hi daphne keep the good work love to see your comments