A Saudi woman was given a 15-month jail term after she was found guilty of falsely accusing two men of a crime when she knew they were innocent.

The court was told that Mona Ibrahim, 26, went to the Valletta police station on 26 November 2008, telling the police that two men (one of whom she had taken with her to the police station) had tried raping her two days earlier.

During the investigation, Ms Ibrahim told the police that she had agreed to meet Rezenne Gabray Tevelde on 24 November 2008. They had met in Valletta and went to Paceville, where they met Anderbraham Gebremariam Matthews and some other people.

According to Ms Ibrahim, they had gone to a bar and later to a disco. She said that when she left Paceville at about 11pm the two men left with her. They got a taxi to Valletta and the woman wanted to smoke a cigarette, so they went to a parking area that is accessible by a stairway close to the bus station.

The woman claimed that it was there that one of the men wanted to have sex with her against her will. She said he had punched her, torn off her clothes, held her down and had sex with her. She claimed the other man had not had sex with her, but rubbed up against her.

The woman went on to say that the men then stole €300 that the woman had in her pocket, leaving €20 for her to take a taxi back to the open centre, where she had been staying.

The men had denied the woman’s version of events when they were arrested and interrogated.

Anderbraham Gebremariam Matthews said Ms Ibrahim and Rezenne Gabray Tevelde left alone after they met for some drinks on 24 November 2008.

Anderbraham Gebremariam Matthews said he had met Ms Ibrahim in Valletta two days later and she had told him that the other man had stolen some money from her, which she expected Anderbraham Gebremariam Matthews to return.

When he refused she started shouting and fighting with him, insisting he goes to the police station with her.

Rezenne Gabray Tevelde, on his part, said he had known Ms Ibrahim for a few days before they met on 24 November 2008. They had left Paceville together and went to his place, where she wanted to have sex with him; he didn’t want to however, and they had sex in the morning instead.

Ms Ibrahim then wanted to leave, so he went to have a quick shower, and when he was done, he found that she had stolen his wallet, which he then found in her bag.

A gynaecologist who was appointed to carry out some tests told the court that there were no signs that indicated that Ms Ibrahim had been raped. Another court expert concluded that the swabs showed that the woman had some traces of seminal liquid, but it was of neither one of the two men involved.

A doctor who examined Ms Ibrahim on 26 November 2008 also confirmed that Ms Ibrahim had no bruising, abrasions or other signs that showed she had suffered any form of violence.

The court said it is convinced that the correct version of events was that given by the two men and when the woman alleged that she had been raped she knew that this was not the case.

The court was presided over by magistrate Doreen Clarke. Police inspector Graziella Muscat prosecuted and lawyer Mark Busuttil appeared for the accused.