Justin Haber found guilty of sexually harassing 14-year-old girl

Former national team goalkeeper and former Labour councillor Justin Haber was found guilty of subjecting a minor under the age of fifteen to acts or behaviour of a sexual nature.

The charge included verbal expressions, gestures or physical acts where such acts, words or conduct were unwanted by the victim and could have been reasonably considered as offensive, humiliating, degrading, or intimidating towards her.

Haber pleaded not guilty to the charges brought against him.

The offences occurred between 2020 and 2022. During this period, the 14-year-old victim was employed as a waitress at the Pitch 16 establishment in Marsaxlokk, where Justin Haber was her employer.

Inspector Kylie Borg, stationed with the Vice Squad testified that on 29 August 2022, she received communication from Aġenzija Appoġġ regarding an anonymous report stating that a teenage girl was going to be involved in sexual encounters with Haber.

The inspector was shown an anonymous chat purportedly between Haber and an unidentified person. Following her investigation, Inspector Borg identified the person involved and interviewed her in the presence of her parents.

The victim said that Haber had slapped her on the buttocks, asked her to kiss him on the cheek, and then turned his face, resulting in her kissing him on the lips.

She further claimed that Haber had requested nude photographs of her breasts, though she never complied, and asked her twice about her virginity while also inviting her to have sexual intercourse with him on two occasions.

Following this, the accused was arrested on 6 October 2022 near the Kordin football ground.

During police interrogation, conducted in the presence of his lawyer, Haber denied sending the messages, arguing that they were too well-written for him as he is dyslexic. He admitted, however, that the kiss occurred as described. He denied inviting the victim to his home but confirmed slapping her buttocks and asking about her virginity.

The victim, who testified via video conferencing, described how Haber’s behaviour was normal in public, but inappropriate behind the scenes. She said he would kiss her neck, ask her to hug him, and encourage her to lose her virginity with him while suggesting that she go to his house or spend time alone with him on a boat.

She never agreed to these requests and said she stayed at her job out of financial necessity despite fearing him because of his anger.

A friend corroborated that Haber would make inappropriate comments, telling the victim to turn around while wearing a bikini and even witnessed him kissing her.

In his testimony, Haber denied touching the victim’s buttocks, explaining that alleged contact occurred only when she bent down to pick up objects and that such contact was incidental.

Regarding the kiss, he stated that the victim kissed him on his cheek on his birthday and he denied turning his face to kiss her on the lips, despite admitting to doing so during his interrogation. He also denied ever inviting the victim to his home or owning a boat during the alleged incidents.

The court held that the accused failed to provide a satisfactory explanation for his conduct. He claimed the workplace environment was friendly and family-like, but the court stated that this was not a legitimate defence for sexually harassing a minor.

The court also rejected Haber’s argument that the victim initiated physical contact. It emphasised the employer’s duty to regulate employee conduct and not foster inappropriate familiarity at work.

Thus, Haber was found guilty by the court sentenced him to two years imprisonment, suspended for four years. He was also fined €7,000 and a three-year restraining order was issued in favour of the victim.

Additionally, Haber’s name was ordered to be added onto the Offenders Register.

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