A police investigator has told a court how a Maltese man allegedly lured his ex-girlfriend to his house with the promise of a job, only for her to be raped instead.
25-year-old Stefmar Hatherly from Floriana, appeared under arrest before magistrate Giannella Camilleri Busuttil on Thursday, to face related charges.
Police Inspector Omar Zammit explained to the court how, at around 3pm on June 4, a woman reported to the police that she had gone to her ex-boyfriend's house, "because he was going to find her a job."
But the man drove her to a deserted area instead. When the woman escaped, the defendant managed to apprehend and then rape her.
He then drove her to his home in Floriana, where the woman was locked up. She managed to escape later in the afternoon and went to the police station to file a report.
Hatherly later went, of his own volition, to the police headquarters in Floriana, allegedly to ask where the woman was, and was taken into custody.
Hatherly stands charged with ten offences in all, including rape, committing a non-consensual act of a sexual nature, offending public morals in a public place and recidivism. He was also accused of having detained the alleged victim against her will at a flat in Floriana on June 4 and illegally arresting her.
Four additional charges dealing with a separate assault, which allegedly occurred at a flat in Sliema on May 20, where Hatherly is accused of causing the woman to fear he would use violence against her, attacking her, threatening both her and another man, as well as breaching the peace, were also pressed.
Together with the charges, prosecuting lawyers Jurgen Dalli and Cynthia Tomasuolo from the Office of the Attorney General, assisting Police Inspectors Wayne Buhagiar and Omar Zammit, also requested the court to issue the orders it saw fit in order to ensure the safety of the alleged victims.
Defence lawyer Matthew Xuereb, appearing for Hatherly together with lawyers Jose Herrera and Sandro Camilleri, said the defence had only recently been made aware that the victim had released a statement to the police and to the inquiring magistrate in the course of the inquiry.
The lawyers requested the immediate disclosure of these statements in order to prepare its questions for the woman. Xuereb told the court he "intended to confront her with several truths, such as that she had sent very erotic messages to the defendant asking to meet him."
Inspector Zammit did not object, saying it was only possible because the woman had given her sworn testimony on video, as otherwise the parties would have had to wait for the inquiry to be concluded.
No ban on publishing defendant's name
Xuereb asked the court to impose a ban on the publication of the names of the defendant and alleged victim, "in order not to get relatives, especially his daughter who is a minor and completely extraneous to this case, involved."
The lawyer suggested that the victim had been in a months-long relationship with the defendant.
The AG's lawyer Jurgen Dalli said the prosecution agreed with respect to the victim, but reminded the court that the law spoke of publication bans "in order to protect the victim from secondary victimisation, and not the defendant." He argued that there were no reasons to hide the name of the defendant.
Xuereb argued that a balance must be struck between open access justice which is an important aspect of democracy and the rights of the defendant.
The court denied the request, imposing a media ban only on publishing the victim's name.
Lawyer Jose Herrera then requested the defendant be released on bail, arguing that the court could prohibit the defendant from contacting the alleged victim, as well as issue a temporary protection order. Additionally, the man was raising a six-year-old daughter, who would end up suffering the most, he said.
Dalli countered that there were other eyewitnesses - two victims were named in the charge sheet, he pointed out, arguing that this risk had not been eliminated.
The accused's criminal record already featured three previous convictions, Dalli pointed out, saying this led the prosecution to doubt the extent to which the man would adhere to any potential bail conditions.
Furthermore, the prosecutor said, the daughter resided with her mother. "This 'excuse' about the daughter is not appreciated when dealing with such a delicate issue," he said. "The defendant knows the victim and the witnesses live with her so he knows them too. This is why the prosecution is insisting that the risk of tampering with evidence is real," Dalli concluded.
The court denied bail in view of the early stage of proceedings, as well as Hatherly's previous convictions for crimes against another ex-girlfriend of his.
A protection order was issued in favour of the victims, prohibiting Hatherly from approaching, contacting or following them, or loitering around their homes or workplaces.