Police inspector’s role in father’s wrongful arrest questioned

Louise Calleja, the police inspector who led the prosecution of a man found to have been wrongfully convicted of sexually abusing his daughter, could not have been unaware of key evidence that raised suspicions about the daughter’s claims, a court heard yesterday.

Lawyer Tonio Azzopardi was making his final submissions in the constitutional case filed by Emanuel Camilleri against Inspector Calleja, who had successfully prosecuted Camilleri after his daughter falsely accused him of sexual abuse.

Camilleri spent over a year in prison.

“The Inspector came to the wrong conclusion despite the fact that there was important evidence that she was duty bound to investigate and bring to the attention of the court.”

Camilleri is claiming a breach of his right to a fair trial.

Leanne Camilleri had admitted telling the court the fabricated story, which had led to her father’s imprisonment for almost 400 days. The father was provisionally released by the Constitutional Court last June.

Camilleri’s wife Lisa May is accused of making up the abuse story.

The lawyer expressed disbelief at the inspector’s claims of being unaware of previous incident reports about Mrs Camilleri.

The inspector had previously told the court that she was unaware of the reports, as they were usually handled by district police, while she works with the Vice Squad.

The reports in question state that Lisa May Camilleri would neglect Leanne’s brother to the extent where he would at times be forced to sleep out on the street.

“Inspector Calleja is not some newcomer. She is an experienced Vice Squad officer and we do not believe that she did not see any of them or that no one brought them to her attention,” Azzopardi said.

Commenting on the fact that the mother was never arraigned, Azzopardi told the court he suspects that someone “had a change of heart along the way” and stopped the police from charging her.

Pointing to a report by Appogg, which had sparked off the investigation, Azzopardi said this also raised serious questions as to the girl’s credibility.

No medical evidence of sexual violence was found on the girl, however the father was still charged. The lawyer suggested that the inspector had charged Camilleri with defilement and not rape, in order not to have the case withdrawn.

Tonio Azzopardi had harsh words for the way the case was handled by the courts. He said that Magistrate Miriam Hayman had refused to admit the testimony of a lawyer who had spoken to the girl and who would have testified that the girl had changed her testimony several times.

He pointed out flaws in the logic behind having sexual abuse cases consistently heard by the same magistrate. “Familiarity breeds contempt,” said the lawyer.

The interim measure by the Constitutional Court to free the man should have set an example for the authorities, Azzopardi said.

Lawyer Arthur Azzopardi, for the defence, said the magistrate’s court had to take a decision based on the evidence presented before it at the time and new evidence cannot be brought into the equation. The court cannot be accused of breaching someone’s right to a fair trial if the relevant evidence was not available at the time.

“The defence team has repeatedly claimed that the girl used to lie. The fact is that her testimony before the courts was always consistent. Her version never changed and it led to a conviction.”

The lawyer also said the parts in the Appogg report claiming that the girl was a liar were based on hearsay. The court had decided, based on her evidence, that the charges were proved beyond reasonable doubt. Both sides had also had the chance to present all the witnesses they wanted and cross-examine them. The courts had carried out their duties well, he said.

Arthur Azzopardi claimed the prosecution was using Inspector Calleja to indirectly criticise the courts, adding that Tonio Azzopardi was free to believe the theory that Inspector Calleja was aware of the reports but “a case is built on evidence, not personal opinions”.

The case was adjourned for sentencing to February 12, 2015.