Suspended police officer accused of rape out on bail

A suspended police officer, detained on rape charges since April, has been granted bail this morning.

In a decree handed down by the Criminal Court, Mr Justice Aaron Bugeja released 40-year-old Glen Carabott from arrest against a €5,000 deposit and a €5,000 personal guarantee. Carabott must observe a curfew and is prohibited from bothering or molesting the alleged victim.

Previous requests for bail had been turned down, with the court citing a risk of him tampering with the evidence, but the risk was deemed mitigated by the court securing the testimony, via video link, of the victim in the last sitting on 14 May.

Carabott stands charged with rape, non-consensual sexual acts, taking a video of the non-consensual encounter, sexual harassment and committing a crime he was duty-bound to prevent. He has since been suspended from his duties.

During his arraignment, the court had been told the police sergeant had been dispatched to the alleged victim’s house to investigate a burglary report but had raped the woman instead.

In a subsequent sitting, the court declared it had seen sufficient evidence to place the man under a bill of indictment.

Inspectors John Spiteri and Michael Vella prosecuted. Lawyer Ishmael Psaila is defence counsel.

Lawyer Rene Darmanin appeared parte civile for the alleged victim.