The former partner of the estranged wife of a man who claims he was wrongly convicted of sexually abusing his daughter told the court that the girl had confided that her father had not done anything.

The mother, Lisa May Camilleri, is being accused of perjury and of corrupting a witness, her daughter Leanne, leading to the conviction of Emanuel Camilleri, who was sentenced to a two-year jail term.

Mr Camilleri spent nearly 400 days in prison before being provisionally released after his daughter claimed that she had been pressured to falsely claim that he abused her.

The case continued today, and the first witness was Alan Thorne, who had been involved in a 6-month relationship with Ms Camilleri some four years ago.

Mr Thorne testified that on one occasion, the daughter ran away from home after an argument with her mother, and that he went out to look for her.

He said that he managed to find her at a bus stop, took her home and talked to both her and her mother to get them to reconcile.

But he also said that at one point, he asked her whether it was true that her father had abused her. “My daddy never touched me” was the girl’s reply, he added.

Coincidentally, Mr Thorne said, he later came to know Mr Camilleri when both ended up working for Arriva Malta, but at this time, was not aware of his involvement in the case.

At one point, he said, Mr Camilleri stopped showing up at work, and Mr Thorne lost all contact until a chance encounter a few weeks ago.

In this encounter, Mr Thorne asked what had happened, and when Mr Camilleri brought up the case, he confirmed that he had been in a relationship with his estranged wife and revealed what his daughter had told him years ago. The police eventually asked him to make a statement.

The next witness was Xarabank presenter Peppi Azzopardi, who said that he had been following the case for years, after Mr Camilleri and his partner came forward and suggested that a lie detector test should be carried out on air to prove his innocence.

Mr Azzopardi said that he disagreed with the suggestion and advised the couple to put their faith in the justice system, but also promised to continue to meet them and follow up the case.

Recently, he said, a colleague at Where’s Everybody told him that she overheard a girl – Mr Camilleri’s daughter – claiming to have lied about her father abusing her, and the girl was advised to talk to a priest, Fr Hilary Tagliaferro, while Fr Tagliaferro was asked to tell the courts.

Mr Azzopardi said that Where’s Everybody subsequently decided to air a programme on the case, and that when the programme was being advertised, the daughter called, stating that she wanted to speak up.

She agreed to an interview which was carried out by Mr Azzopardi; extracts of this interview – in which she claimed that her father did nothing wrong – were aired on the show.

Ms Camilleri’s lawyer Martin Fenech then brought up the Broadcasting Authority’s decision to censure Xarabank for its coverage of the case, but was overruled by Magistrate Ian Farrugia who said that this was not relevant. The magistrate also assured the lawyer that he was in no way influenced by the programme, adding that he did not even watch Xarabank.

Mr Azzopardi proceeded to defend his conduct nevertheless, pointing out that the programme did not mention Mr Camilleri’s wife nor the daughter’s allegations against her. He also said that the BA’s ruling was an insult to the court, as it implied that magistrates were easily swayed by what they might see on television.

Mr Camilleri’s lawyer Tonio Azzopardi then asked Mr Azzopardi to declare who filed the complaint with the BA, and the presenter confirmed that Dr Fenech did so on behalf of Ms Camilleri.

An argument between the two lawyers broke out, with Dr Fenech arguing that his colleague was seeking to imply impropriety by bringing up his position as a member of the editorial board at Public Broadcasting Services. Mr Azzopardi confirmed Dr Fenech’s claim that he excused himself due to a conflict of interest when the editorial board discussed the Xarabank programme.

Mr Camilleri was the next witness, but his testimony was cut short as Magistrate Farrugia had to leave to attend a funeral.

He confirmed that his daughter had accused him of raping her on five occasions – although he was only charged with defiling her – and that she confirmed this version of events on multiple occasions.

The case continues next Tuesday, with Mr Camilleri expected to resume his testimony.

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