Court acquits man deeming main witness unreliable

A man who was accused of prostituting a "manipulative" 17-year-old girl has been acquitted after a court found her to be an unreliable witness.

The girl, who cannot be named because she is a minor, ran away from home several times and, according to three psychiatrists who testified, she is a good liar and is manipulative.

She had accused 31-year-old Brian Fenech of prostituting her and giving her cocaine, ecstasy and hashish on January 21, 2006 and in the previous weeks.

Magistrate Doreen Clarke said that, although in the eyes of the law, one witness, if believed, was enough to prove someone's guilt, the girl was not credible.

She testified three times during the proceedings and each time gave a different version of events, making her an unreliable witness, especially she being the sole witness for the prosecution, the court noted.

A lot of her testimony did not add up. For example, she said Mr Fenech would lock her in his house, not allowing her to leave, but then said that she had full use of a mobile phone. Police Inspector Dennis Theuma said he had carried out a search at Mr Fenech's house and car and no drugs were found contrary to what the girl had claimed.

The court acquitted Mr Fenech deeming the girl's testimony unreliable.

Police Inspector Raymond Aquilina also prosecuted.

Lawyer Josè Herrera and Veronique Dalli appeared for the Mr Fenech.