Mark Micallef
Lawyer and family offered Gozo rape girl €7,000 deal
Two other lawyers, priest involved in the case
A lawyer and close relatives of the men accused of raping a 14-year-old girl persuaded the alleged victim's family to sign a contract stating they would not testify in court in return for €7,000 in "psychological support".
The girl's mother told The Sunday Times that she signed the contract under intense pressure from the group and out of fear of exposing the issue to the Gozitan community. But she regretted it immediately and together with her daughter forged ahead with the complaint.
The defendants, brothers Peter Paul and Josef Said, stand accused of raping the girl, while Mark Lorry Said and Peter Paul Debono were charged with her defilement. They are all under house arrest.
However, the girl's mother said her family had to withstand pressure from a number of people before the case reached the courts.
She said they were approached by close relatives of the Said brothers and a priest, who acted as an intermediary, shortly after the rape and defilement allegations were made last month.
It is alleged that the relatives tried to convince the family not to pursue the complaint in exchange for money. The girl's father was adamantly against the idea but the mother felt confused.
The relatives left the house but returned with a Gozitan lawyer later in the afternoon. He drafted a contract stipulating that the girl's family would be paid around €7,000 to pay for psychological support. A guarantee of €23,000 was also included as part of a pledge that the accused would not approach the girl.
On the day the men were arrested, the girl's mother said another approach was made - this time by two different lawyers (one from Gozo and another from Malta) who said they wanted to "see if they could come to an arrangement" over the arraignment of the men. The woman immediately called a family acquaintance and the men left.
During a sitting last Friday to reconsider the bail conditions imposed on the men, Chief Justice Vincent De Gaetano made reference to the issue of interference.
He said: "This court cannot fail to observe that in this case it seems that there have been many manoeuvres by people who had an interest to see that the case does not reach the courts.
"It seems that, before the accused were charged in court, money even changed hands in order for there to be a forfeiture of the prosecution (in respect of the accused bearing the Said surname)".
However, the Chief Justice said that the court presided over by him was not called to "decide the legality or otherwise of what happened in this regard or whether whoever was involved in these attempts, including certain lawyers, acted correctly or otherwise".
The allegations of interference emerged in court only after the Attorney General filed an application requesting that the bail granted to the accused be revoked.
The four men were denied bail when first charged on September 18. However, when the compilation of evidence started on September 23, before a different magistrate, the men were placed under house arrest.
After hearing the Attorney General's request to review that decision - together with the testimony of the girl's mother and prosecuting inspector - the Chief Justice decided to keep the men under house arrest, but he raised the personal guarantees.
Peter Paul Said and Josef Said are the brothers of Parliamentary Secretary Chris Said. However, the politician is not being implicated in any way.
The Sunday Times asked the police whether the allegations of interference have been investigated and if any charges are expected to be laid. However, no response was forthcoming by the time of going to print.
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44 Comments
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g borg
Oct 7th 2008, 18:48
what a shame!!!!!!!!!!!!! a priest too for cover up. Shame!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
sgalea
Oct 7th 2008, 18:38
This all goes to show the total lack of ethics. I am curious to see how the lawyers as a profession will react to this.
With regards to the priest : well this is so pathetic and sad. However I suspect that in a closed society like Gozo : OMERTA rules.
Carmen V Gauci
Oct 7th 2008, 12:43
A truly tragic story. A shameful one. Shame on the Lawyer, the Priest and all those who tried to hush up the mother. My sympathy goes to the family in such a difficult and demanding moment.
Our society is crumbling and if our courts don't start handing down severe penalties I'm afraid it will only get worst. Hopefully they get what they DESERVE !!!!
Matt Cremona
Oct 7th 2008, 11:59
Let us see if the priest and lawyers will be charged with conspiracy to conceal a crime......fat chance I say
Joseph Schembri
Oct 6th 2008, 19:33
So many people ready to cast the first stone ... so sad.
To my mind the role of a priest is not that of a judge but a bringer of peace. What is the 'innocent' girl to gain from all this?
Justice should not be about revenge and retribution but about rectitude... but I am afraid that this is lost on the people who have commented below.
And just because for once we have lawyers acting to bring about settlement instead of strife we are ready to cast the proverbial first stone.
Raymond Sammut
Oct 6th 2008, 14:06
@ Joseph Camilleri
What do you mean by "sin"?
The report by Mark Micallef on behalf of The Times is not about something taken out of a prayer book, Mr Camilleri.
The report is about an investigation being carried out currently by the Malta police. The alleged crime is of a very serious nature. Those who by design have been an obstacle to this investigation, among whom are reportedly lawyers and a priest, are also accountable to the legal code of the land like everyone else.
Please explain your stance, Mr Camilleri. Be sure you make clear the difference between "sin" and "crime", and pointing out that we are all equal in the eye of the law.
J. Buttigieg
Oct 6th 2008, 12:38
Mr. John Borg's comment is absolutley ludicrous! I'm sure that he has not been to Gozo for a very long time. Most Maltese are good, understanding people but a few like Mr. Borg are really pathetic generalizing that way. What bothers us Gozoitans about some, very few Maltese like Mr. Borg, is not what they know, it's what they think they know!!
Rita Camilleri
Oct 6th 2008, 10:28
I feel physically sick !!!! Can we have names please, where is justice???? Theyshould be ashmed of themelves, especially the priest, is he one of those who shouts brimstones and fire to all of us of sin ????? I cannot bear to carry on, its utterly utterly disgusting
J Brincat
Oct 6th 2008, 10:23
In these circumstances where there has been a settlement out of court, there should be a system where there can be a prosecution anyway and the victims be compelled to give evidence. This is the case in England with relation to domestic violence and would be good to have a similar basis introduced here.
Jeremy J Camilleri
Oct 6th 2008, 09:24
Why is everyone so surprised?
AN expert at cover ups was needed...hence the priest...
We'll soon have a mob of angry Gozitans parading outside the priest's house...demanding....not justcie...but that he should be left in peace.
Didn't we have something similar when another priest was accused of CHild Abuse....Leave our priests alone...
And yet, as usual, the silence of the church is deafening....
Debbie Tully
Oct 6th 2008, 09:19
What a shame ! What the priest have to do with this chase. The priest should be there to support and bring justice in court not try to interfere. These men if proved guilty should be given a life in jail after ruining a young girls life and taken her teenage years away.
Joseph Camilleri
Oct 6th 2008, 08:53
After reading all the comments one comes to the conclusion that writers pretend to be Judge and Jury. Now knowing some writers one is better to remember that ' Let him who has no sin cast the first stone.
Charles Sammut
Oct 6th 2008, 07:54
Re John Borg"s comments..You got to be kidding right? I was born on Gozo and have lived in NY since 1963 but visit regularly and often and think I know something about life on Gozo. Never read such nonsense in any Maltese publication. This incident could have happened anywhere in the Maltese Islands.How many times have a I read stories about incest and child molestation taking place on the bigger Island in The Times? For your info a Maltese guy by the last name of Clews is doing a long jail sentence right now for sexually abusing a minor in California. Doubt the reasons you mentioned applied there.So don't think there is something on Gozo that contributes to this aberrant behaviour. It is just humans using bad judgement and acting like savages. Behaviour not exclusive to Gozo!
Raymond Sammut
Oct 6th 2008, 06:29
What is being reported here is a clear case of conspiring to pervert the course of justice by a number of lawyers and a priest. The Malta police cannot remain silent on this matter. It is either that the report has no substance, or that charges should have been laid by now. Anything else would amount to a lack of civility in Gozo.
shaun camilleri
Oct 6th 2008, 05:31
It is distgusting the pressure put on these two women and that money can buy silence. The money should be given and these, once shown to be perverts put in prison no matter who their friends are. Also why did this priest go to act as a go between. Does he think the crime is minor.
Tony Borg
Oct 6th 2008, 02:40
We all know that some lawyers are crooked, so it's totally something they would do in a jiffy. But shame on the priest, to interfere with justice and act against the interests of the victim. Time has come for priests to stop thinking that they are the know-it-all experts on all matters that plague mankind, and realize that sexual crimes are serious matters, be they crimes against innocent women, or unsuspecting altar boys.
A. Lombardi
Oct 5th 2008, 23:35
Injustice ? On conviction they should be all locked away, this is getting worse day by day the lawyers can be dealt with and so the priest should be ashamed of himself but then again so should the Vatican ! Crimen Sollicitationis was enforced for 20 years by Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger before he became the Pope.It instructs bishops on how to deal with allegations of child abuse against priests and has been seen by few outsiders.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/programmes/panorama/5389684.stm
http://video.google.co.uk/videoplay?docid=3335354490744010763
Sinclair Calleja
Oct 5th 2008, 22:02
This story somehow reminds me of the movie "Indecent Proposal" (1993, Demi Moore, Robert Redford, Woody Harrelson), but this time the proposal was for 7000 euros instead of for a million dollars...
Chris Finch
Oct 5th 2008, 21:45
Sylvana, for once I agree 100% wholeheartedly with you.
Does anyone else feel sick in their stomach at this disgusting incident.
If there is any justice on this rock, if these people are guilty then they will rot in prison.
C Mallia
Oct 5th 2008, 21:14
" was not called to "decide the legality or otherwise of what happened in this regard or whether whoever was involved in these attempts, including certain lawyers, acted correctly or otherwise"
Then if necessary it is CALLED. Anyone who aids in commiting a crime or even cover up for them are also guilty of complicity.
Robert Callus
Oct 5th 2008, 21:08
Good decision by the girl and parents to prosecute instead of accepting money. Good for them, and for the message to our society that money can't buy everything
Victor Buhagiar
Oct 5th 2008, 18:57
Why only the priest? What about the lawyers and relatives? Anyone who tried to interfere should pay the consequences and they should be taken to court. All of them.
K. Tanti
Oct 5th 2008, 16:55
Shame on all those involved in this case. Mons Grech should take action against the priest as he tried to interfere with justice
deb bugeja
Oct 5th 2008, 16:51
I think the men if found guilty they should be sent to jail and yes they should be made to pay the girl 's psychological treatment if necessary. But not to put everything under the carpet.
Martin Galea De Giovanni
Oct 5th 2008, 16:18
..wonderful,... so now the rape of an under-age girl is treated as yet another transaction...
Just throw in a little bit of money and the problem is gone. The joys of capitalism, lawyers and priests... the perfect mix for an abhorring mess !
Edward Zammit
Oct 5th 2008, 15:51
@ J. Pace
A public apology !? That priest should be derobed and put on the sex offenders list to be viewed by one and all !
John Borg
Oct 5th 2008, 15:36
This is a tragedy for the victim and her family but also a rare insight into what it must be like to be a Gozitan (as opposed to a Maltese who owns an apartment) in Gozo. This is a place where the Church remains an oppressive influence in daily life, where certain family clans wield overbearing power over the rest of the community, and where it is considered better to keep things quite rather than seek justice. Gozo is a time warp, reminding us what life was like in Malta three or four generations ago. Given the choice whether to live in Malta or in Gozo, I'll take over-populated and over-polluted Malta any time.
tyron pace
Oct 5th 2008, 14:56
this is more than shameful , typical Gozo-style corruption ! hope all involved will get to justice......a priest , lawyers....so many big heads mentioned! lets see how this will end.......if a person will be found with a small personal amount of illegal substance he will be named and shamed allover media & news.....wot about this now ??? MONEY TALKS !!
s.bugeja
Oct 5th 2008, 14:23
Can nothing happen in Gozo without there being a priest involved?
D Fenech
Oct 5th 2008, 13:51
How despicable of all involved!!!!
Gozo and Malta sound more like a Scilian Mafia community by the minute!!!!!
mario borg
Oct 5th 2008, 13:18
Incredible!...a priest trying to cover up such a dreadful crime. If this is a serious country this priest and all the others should be prosecuted. No more excuses and platitudes
G J Grech
Oct 5th 2008, 13:00
Like when the names of the perpetrators were made public, the names of the lawyers involved should also be made public and immediately suspended.
Sylvana Zarb Darmanin
Oct 5th 2008, 12:33
This is disgusting!! Where have our values gone? Is this the same Malta which always boasts of Christianity? It is a great pity that many people are spending their energy on petty things while ignoring the deminishing of values amongst us Maltese!
My prayers are with this girl and her family. Shame on all those who were more interested in putting all this undetr the carpet!! No wonder Malta was placed towards the bottom of the list with regard to corruption!
David Muscat
Oct 5th 2008, 12:24
If true, shame on the lawyers and the priest. Isn't it illegal to attempt to cover a crime? I hope some people are not more equal than others and a proper investigation is made.
The curia should also check whether its priests are also involved in the coverup of the alleged rape and if the allegations are found to be true, distance itself from the persons involved and take steps to remove him from the priesthood.
B Maloret
Oct 5th 2008, 12:09
The priest who chose to get involved in this case should be defrocked. Under British law he would face criminal charges for attempting to pervert the course of justice.
Alfred Grima
Oct 5th 2008, 11:56
@Martin Dimech
Mr Dimech, not just lock them up, if found guilty, the Authorities should throw the keys where nobody could find them.
Charles Micallef
Oct 5th 2008, 11:54
It is funny how many do gooders there are in Gozo who tried to assist some,
Be assured that if the accused was a nobody, no priest or solicitor would have tried to help him / her !
Equality in justice, my left foot!
Tanja Cilia
Oct 5th 2008, 11:33
You cannot buy or sell something that is priceless. End of story.
Eric Soames
Oct 5th 2008, 11:27
Hmm, 'money even changed hands'. Where is that money now?
John Xuereb
Oct 5th 2008, 11:03
The lawyer involved was far from ethical and should be barred. Doctor of law...doctering the law more like.
Ingrid Jones-cameron
Oct 5th 2008, 10:59
Persons awaiting trail on much lesser charges are not granted bail or put under house arrests. I wonder what criteria was evaluated to grant these rapists house arrest especially in light of the interferience with justice before the trail. Are all men equal in the eyes of the law? errrmmm I wonder what's behind this decision...
J Pace
Oct 5th 2008, 10:45
A Priest?? Even a priest interfered in this? So the priest thinks that the rape of a minor by two family men should never have been exposed? This is outrageous!! The church should at least ask for a public apology and the priest in question should be admonished in trying to hide a crime!!
Kevin Zammit
Oct 5th 2008, 10:39
If there is justice all involved should now be thrown in jail ... including the mother for even contemplating the idea
Martin Dimech
Oct 5th 2008, 10:38
All those involved in trying to encourage the family not to pursue this should be arrested.That includes the lawyers and priest.The behaviour of these people is dispicable just like the crime.Lock them up,now!