A 43-year-old man who resided at Suret il-Bniedem temporary shelter today was jailed for six years after he was found guilty of defiling his partner’s seven-year-old daughter and relapsing.

The court also issued a protection order for the victim and her family.

The crime took place on various occasions, starting in January 2009, according to the victim.

A court heard that the mother of the victim has eight children, most of whom live or lived in institutions. During weekends some of the children stayed at their mother’s house while the rest stayed at their grandmother’s place.

The victim started to live in an institution at the age of 18 months. At the beginning of 2009, the victim had opened up with a nun who cared for her at the institution and told her what she had just been through. She told the nun that her aggressor touched her private parts. A social worker was brought in to deal with the case and the victim reiterated that she was being abused. The police were also alerted. Police investigations found that the victim had also informed her two brothers, who were some four years older than her.

A court heard how the victim had claimed that the first time she was abused was at her mother’s home in Marsascala. She said that she was asleep and her aggressor woke her up, removed his trousers and removed hers too, sat down and placed her on his knee with her back facing him and put his hands on her private parts. She said that she told him that he was hurting her but despite this, he continued with the abuse. According to the minor, this was not an isolated case and the abuse continued.

She said that her mother was never around when the abuse took place. According to the minor, her aggressor used to even try to kiss her in the same way “lovers” do. She claimed that he warned her that if she uttered a word on what was happening, he would beat up her family and her.

She said that her mother would send her partner and her to ask for money from people and would end up in a garage in Marsascala where she claimed that her mother and her partner (the aggressor) used to “make adult movies”.

It also resulted that at times, her two brothers were sleeping in the same room when this took place.

The victim said that her mother suspected that something was going on since one time, her mother saw her without clothes and asked her what was happening to which the victim replied “nothing”.

One of the victim’s brothers told the court that his sister had alerted him on the abuse but as far as he knew the abuse had only happened once.

The court said that although there were conflicting versions, it is normal for minors to mix certain details due to their young age and it doesn’t mean that they were not saying the truth. One of her brothers, the court argued, stated what his sister had told him and this in no way meant that the victim was not telling the truth.

The court said that there was no reason to believe that the story was made up.

The court ordered that the names of the victims and her family are not published.

Magistrate Audrey Demicoli presided over the case. Police Inspector Louise Calleja prosecuted.