Medal of Bravery
Awarded on: 1988-08-22
Invested on: 1989-06-02
Despina Buhagiar intervened in a domestic dispute, with no thought of risk to herself, to save a woman who was being stabbed by an uncontrollable aggressor. At approximately 10 a.m. on March 21, 1987, Mrs. Buhagiar heard a loud argument going on at her neighbour's house. She watched as a man went to his car and removed an ice pick from a tool box in the trunk, placed it in his back pocket and returned to the house. A few moments later, hearing screams for help, she ran next door and saw the victim lying on the floor, being stabbed repeatedly by her former common-law husband. Mrs. Buhagiar yelled at the angry man to stop and tried to pull him off the victim, but he resisted. She then grabbed a baseball bat from under the refrigerator and struck the man on his back, unconcerned that he might turn on her. At this, the man finally ceased his enraged attack and left. Mrs. Buhagiar quickly took the victim and two children to her house where she immediately called the police and an ambulance. The victim recovered from multiple stab wounds following surgery to remove part of the ice pick from her shoulder.