Woman jailed for falsely accusing two men of raping her
A 26-year-old woman was imprisoned for 15 months today after it was proved in court that she had falsely reported two men of having raped her.
Mona Ibrahimm who is from Saudi Arabia, had claimed in November 2008 that she had been raped by Anderbraham Gebremariam Matthews and Rezenee Gebray Tevelde.
The police, after preliminary investigations, referred the case to the police Vice Squad.
The woman had claimed that she met Rezenee Gebray Tevelde in Valletta and they went to Paceville where they met Anderbraham Gebremariam Matthews and others. They had some drinks and then went to a disco.
When she left at 11 p.m., the two men accompanied her to Valletta in a taxi. At the Valletta bus terminus stairs (leading down to the former Phoenicia laundry) one of the men made sexual advances but she resisted him. He then punched her, pulled off her clothes and raped her. The other man also participated.
They then robbed her of some €300, leaving her €20 which she used to go to the open centre where she lived.
The woman had reported the incident some two days after the alleged incident.
The men were arrested but denied the claims.
Mr Matthews told the police that he had met the woman and others in Paceville but the woman and Rezenee Gebray Tevelde later left the group.
A couple of days later he met the woman on a bus and she told him that Tevelde had robbed her and she demanded the money from him, since he was a friend of Tevelde. He refused and she started shouting at him.
She then went to the police station where all of a sudden she claimed that she had been raped.
Mr Tevelde confirmed that he had been to Paceville with the woman. She then went to his place and wanted sexual relations with him but he refused.
He said he later noticed that she had put his wallet into her bag. He took it back. They went to the police station and she ran off and he never heard of her again before he met his friend.
Court expert Dr Mariella Chircop said Ms Ibrahimm had no signs of violence and there was no indication that she had been raped.
Dr Marisa Cassar said that swabs revealed semen but it did not belong to either of the men.
Magistrate Doreen Clarke said the facts claimed by Ms Ibrahim were not borne out by evidence. Although she had claimed to have been punched and had her clothes pulled off, there wasn't a single scratch on her. The medical evidence also did not back her story.
It was clear that the woman knew that the two men had not sexually assaulted her and that she had filed a false report against them.
She therefore jailed her for 15 months.
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Joe Xuereb
Jan 22nd 2011, 20:13
I am sure you've all read about the Saudi prince who was charged and convicted of murdering his male 'lover' in a London hotel only recently. Humanity prevailed in his regard. I believe he has been sent down (prison) as deporting him back to Saudi Arabia would have been his death sentence for his homosexuality.
This Saudi 'princess-who-fancies-herself-as-a-praying-mantis-for-men' has now been jailed. We did her a favour for officially sending her back with her passport endorsed 'persona non grata, because....' would have signed her death warrant.
Of course she had every right to spend a holiday on our nice island and behave like a decent tourist. But she was in an Open Centre? Why? Even a back-packer would stay in a hostel at least. She should thank her god that Malta only sent her to prison.
F Goodwin
Jan 21st 2011, 23:58
Actually, are there any lawyers around to clarify this point? Is it legal for a newspaper to publish these people's full names in this manner? Certainly giving the full names of the exonerated men adds nothing to the reporting of this woman's crime. If I were one of those men, I would not want any further association with the case. In most countries there are laws about publishing people's full names in sensitive cases like this.
F Goodwin
Jan 21st 2011, 23:54
Can anyone clarify whether she was sentenced in the course of the rape trial, or if she was separately charged with this and had her own trial?
I'm interested in learning more about how the justice system works. If a judge finds in the course of a trial that the victim is lying, do they sentence her within the accused rapist's trial?
Keith Chircop
Jan 21st 2011, 00:44
Just because she's from Saudi Arabia doesn't mean she's an asylum seeker.
K Zammit
Jan 21st 2011, 11:05
Then why do you think she lived in the open centre?
M. Fenech
Jan 20th 2011, 16:52
There are plenty of individuals like this woman going around and saying and telling lies. And some foolish idiots believe what they say!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
L. Dimech
Jan 20th 2011, 15:45
What a farce !!!!!!
Without losing sight of the fact or trying to minimise that she deserved her punishment, I'd like to make one observation.
I very much wonder whether someone who's actually found guilty of raping a girl, is given such a prison term of 15 months! He'd most probably be let off with some suspended sentence.
Robert Callus
Jan 20th 2011, 16:25
@L Dimech
While I agree that our laws are too lenient on violence and sexual abuse, what she did is a very serious thing. These two men have probably been through hell, their lives seriously disrupted. And we're talking about a 26 year old woman here not a 12 year old girl.
J Mizzi
Jan 20th 2011, 15:05
What a liar, she deserves more!
Charles Sammut
Jan 20th 2011, 13:35
I suppose that she cannot e repatriated to Saudi Arabia because she will have to face Sharia law in respect of her alcohol consumption and sex outside marriage.
Only in Gahanland.
Sean Grima
Jan 20th 2011, 15:28
perhaps you can quote the part of the law which allows that.
Joe Xuereb
Jan 20th 2011, 13:33
@Peter Agius. She doesn't deserve stoning. Maybe she is running away from persecution and came to the west to be a free western woman. The problem is, she cannot handle it. She sounds like she is her own punishment. She knows she won't be stoned in the Christian west but she is taking too much for granted. She's her own punishment.
I'll now wait for her apologists.
Joe Xuereb
Jan 20th 2011, 13:28
This reminds me of the Libyan who was charged with trying to take birds to Tunisia two weeks ago. Like him, what is a Saudi woman doing in an Open Centre? I thought such a Centre was for would-be economic migrants, asylum seekers, legal immigrants waiting to be processed (or maybe past that stage). And she is a Saudi national? In an Open Centre?
Amanda Catania
Jan 20th 2011, 15:30
Joe Xuereb you beat me to it. Shows how our security is NIL, NADA, ZERO. Why was she not expelled as soon as she landed here? Saudis cannot claim asylum or any type of protection.
Sean Grima
Jan 21st 2011, 09:24
perhaps Amanda can explain on what grounds Saudis should be expelled as soon as they land.
Peter Agius
Jan 20th 2011, 13:18
F'pajjizha ihaggruha u jkun haqqha.
J Mallia
Jan 20th 2011, 13:47
Donnok illawrjat fil ligi umanitarja !!! Jekk joghbok tejd'x li int Malti Sur Peter Agius.....Il veru trid " taqra biex temmen" !!!!!!
J Farrugia
Jan 20th 2011, 14:00
il-verita' wegghetek J Mallia? Kull ma qal kollu verita'! Jew issa anke l-verita irridu nahbu biex inkunu verament paljetti tal-barranin.
Peter Agius
Jan 20th 2011, 14:32
Jidher li l-iskop tieghi li nipprovoka irnexxa mas-Sur J.Mallia. Jien ghidt F'PAJJIZHA JKUN HAQQHA. Nahseb li is-Sur Mallia jaf li is-Saudi Arabia tinforza il-ligi tax-Sharia fl-aktar mod strett taghha li sahansitra anka principessa qatawla rashha fuq adulterju. Imbaghad jigu hawn u jtuha ghax-xalar bla razan ghas-spejjes tieghi, tieghek u taghna. Ghax kun af Sur Mallia li jien Malti daqshekk u nghid li jien Malti bi kburija.
Sean Grima
Jan 20th 2011, 15:28
so what? should we do the same?
Marianna Galea Xuereb
Jan 21st 2011, 08:50
Ma nghidx li ghandhom ihaggruha izda haqqa xeba u tal-inqas tlett snin habs. Mnalla daz-zmien hawn DNA tests ghax li kieku kien imqar tletin sena ilu u fettillha tghamel xi grif u tbengil lilha nfisha qabel ma ghamlet ir-rapport x'aktarx kienet tigi emnuta. Setghet tigi emnuta wkoll li kieku imqar wiehed minnhom verament kellu x'jaqsam maghha bil-kunsens taghha. Din mhux biss abbuzat minn dawn l-irgiel izda wkoll mill-pulizija u qrati Maltin u hliet hin il-pulizija u l-qrati tghana.
Joe Camilleri
Jan 20th 2011, 12:52
she still had €300 after a night out !!! then how much she had before going out
is there is where our money is going????????
Matthew Farrugia
Jan 20th 2011, 13:25
"our money" is being pumped back into the economy- amazing, I know. Part of that is taken as tax, part of which will be used for her own incarceration. Poetic.
Sean Grima
Jan 20th 2011, 15:28
why, can't she have money because she is from saudi arabia?
Lucia Davies
Jan 20th 2011, 17:07
excuse me if I had 300 euros in my hand I would be thinkng which bill I am going to pay next not enjoying myself in paceville and I am one of those maltese, who can proudly say my husband and I never scrounged on Government benefits ( maltese peoples money), and these so called asylum seekers have that much money and more to spend in paceville,, my mind is playing tricks on me or what????????????
Marianna Galea Xuereb
Jan 21st 2011, 08:58
In Saudi Arabia, even the official poor are richer than the everage Maltese nowadays and Mona Ibrahimm is most probably supplementing her allowance at Maltese's taxpayers' expense with prostituition - a profession which is not easy to practice openly in Saudi. I guess liberal apologists will soon be claiming that she should be granted asylum status because she is not free to practice her own profession and pursue her chosen lifestyle in her own country!!!!!
Sean Grima
Jan 21st 2011, 09:22
everyone is free to spend his or her money as they wish.