Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/578491
maltatoday, WEDNESDAY, 30 SEPTEMBER 2015 News Republic Street, Valletta next to the Courts Youth cleared of Splash and Fun sexual assault The court heard how the man was accused of touching a 14-year-old girl's private parts while she was swimming with her friend in August last year MATTHEW AGIUS A couart has declared a young man innocent of charges corrupt- ing an underage girl at Splash and Fun Waterpark, saying that the girl's version of events was not credible. The court, presided by Mag- istrate Charmaine Galea, heard how the man, referred to only as AA, was accused of touching a young girl's private parts while she was swimming with her friend in August last year. The 14-year-old girl had tes- tified that there weren't many people using the Lazy River ride at the time of the assault and remembered the accused and a friend of his had been looking at her and giggling amongst them- selves. Whilst she had been on the rubber ring in a darkened tun- nel, which forms part of the Lazy River ride, she had become sepa- rated from her friend's ring due to the efforts of three youths who had been trying to isolate the girl. One youth had pushed her on to the accused, who then repeatedly touched her private parts under- water. She said she had told him to leave her alone or she would scream, but that this did not dissuade the accused. She had eventually told her friend when they had emerged from the water, saying that she was so frightened that she was shaking. Her friend, however said that whilst the victim had been trem- bling slightly, they had subse- quently "laughed it off " and con- tinued with their day, not wanting to let the actions of the men spoil their fun. Whilst searching for a phone to contact the victim's mother and the police, the girls claimed to have encountered the accused and his friends again, alleging that they were then subjected to verbal harassment and flirtatious gestures. The victim said that she then suffered a panic attack and the manager of the facility had spoken to the youths who, she said, had admitted to the sexual assault. The water park's Managing Di- rector however had testified that the accused had insisted that he had only touched the girl's thigh with his toe. The accused had chosen to tes- tify in his defence, saying that he had been unaware of anything untoward having occurred until he and his brother were sum- moned to the Director's office some time after 2pm. The court noted that it was "slightly odd" that a 14-year-old girl who had suffered a sexual as- sault would choose to continue spending the rest of the day at the resort, further noting that the girl had testified to not phoning her mother earlier as she and her friend wanted to enjoy their day out. It also found it hard to be- lieve that the accused could have repeatedly touched her private parts without her screaming for help. Likewise the testimony of the girl's friend who said that they had subsequently "laughed off the whole incident," did not appear to support the girl's allegations. It also noted that whilst one of the girls identified the ac- cused, the victim was not certain whether it was him and not one of his companions, whose denial of having touched any of the girls was not contested by the pros- ecution. Faced with two versions of events in direct conflict with each other, the court held that the accusations had not been proven beyond reasonable doubt and dis- charged the accused. 116 new recruits started their careers as police constables Tuesday, the first cohort to en- joy new union rights accorded to the police. The recruits spent the past 14 weeks in training for their new careers. Home Affairs minister Car- melo Abela told the new recruits at their passing out parade that they had serious responsibili- ties, but also new rights and working conditions. "Work in a disciplined force should be con- sidered a career," Abela said. Since 2013 over 500 members from the police, army and civil protection corps attended spe- cialised courses overseas, an investment totalling €800,000. Over half were police officers trained in forensic, economic crime, cybercrime, and human trafficking. The government is now seeking accreditation for the Ta' Kandja police academy from the Univer- sity of Malta and MCAST. "My vision is for the disciplined forc- es to work together in synergy, giving the best levels of protec- tion for society," Abela said. Abela also emphasised his de- termination to strengthen work- ing conditions. "There are new rights of representation. Now work is being carried out on the possibility of introducing an insurance policy for all mem- bers of the disciplined forces. Together with Commissioner of Police Michael Cassar, all necessary support will be given to those ready to work for the good of the force. "Wear your uniform with pride and humility. Your responsibilities do not finish at the end of your shift. From now on- wards, in every moment, you are police officers," Abela said. The ceremony also in- cluded the nomination of PC Neil Saliba as best recruit, and PC Pauline Bonello in first place aca- demically and PC Shanice Schembri coming in sec- ond. Police force welcomes 116 new recruits Home Affairs minister Carmelo Abela inspecting the new recruits The 14-year-old girl who said she was sexually assualted spent the rest of the day at the Splash and Fun park