Man charged with partner's rape, threatening 11-year-old daughter

A man has been charged with raping his ex-partner and threatening his young daughter by making a throat-cutting gesture.

The 51-year-old Egyptian man pleaded not guilty to the charges but was remanded in custody after the court heard how he had ignored a previous protection order.

Inspector John Spiteri arraigned the man, who cannot be named by court order to protect his victims, accusing him of rape, illegal arrest, committing a non-consensual sex act on his partner, causing his partner and her children to fear violence, attacking his daughter and threatening them.

Although the alleged rape had taken place in August, the man was arrested two days ago after he allegedly threatened his daughter.

Spiteri told Magistrate Neville Camilleri how the alleged victim had gone to his office on Sunday.

“She had filed several reports, over 100, and she herself had been arraigned for making threats. They came to my office because an 11-year-old girl who is the accused’s biological daughter said that he had made a throat-cutting gesture to her,” Spiteri testified.

He added that the mother had also explained that on one occasion, as they were trying to reconcile, she did not want to have sex as she had just come out of hospital but that he had “forced himself on her”.

The man’s children lived in constant fear of their father, said the inspector, adding that a protection order previously imposed on the man was being ignored as the accused worked in a shop under their house.

Both the victim and children are constantly in fear of the man’s violence, insisted the prosecution.

Defence lawyer Jason Grima argued that this was “just one of hundreds of false reports” filed by the man’s estranged partner.

Why arraign him now, asked the lawyer. The prosecution said the gesture to the child was the final straw.

Inspector Spiteri objected to bail. The accused was facing very serious charges and there was a risk of him approaching and suborning witnesses, he said.

“He lives two storeys underneath them and is their family. It isn’t the first time the accused had problems with these people,” said the inspector, pointing out that numerous protection orders had been ignored by the accused.

“He is not capable of following the instructions of the court your honour,” concluded the prosecution.

Grima argued that the man’s ex-partner was doing everything she could to prevent the man from acknowledging the children.

“The charges cannot change… this isn’t something that happened yesterday, but months ago. They have spoken more than once since then,” submitted the lawyer.

The magistrate denied bail because of the risk of the accused tampering with evidence.