A housewife had a courtroom in stitches yesterday as she recounted how her breasts were exposed to a gas distributor when a neighbour tore her dress during an argument.

Rita Camenzuli, 66, from Żabbar was accused of slightly injuring 73-year-old neighbour Rosanne Magro.

Ms Magro was acquitted of the same charges.

As she took the witness stand, Ms Camenzuli was asked by Magistrate Edwina Grima to kiss the crucifix and swear to say the truth. She would kiss the cross a thousand times because she had done nothing wrong, Ms Camenzuli promptly replied.

She testified that last September 1, at about 9 am, she left her house in St Lawrence Street, Żabbar to buy a gas cylinder from the distributor whose truck was parked nearby.

As she stood and chatted to the man, Ms Magri, rudely pushed in between them and made the sign of the cross.

Ms Camenzuli asked her why she had done so.

“Am I possessed? Do I need to be exorcised,” she asked her neighbour. She said that Ms Magri reacted by trying to throttle her.

Ms Magro then ripped her dress, exposing her breasts to the gas distributor, she said, producing the torn garment from her handbag.

Eyewitness Isabella Axisa confirmed Ms Camenzuli’s version of events, adding that she was as shocked by the unprovoked argument as the accused was.

The witness said she had to comfort Mr Camenzuli and help her get back home.

Lawyer Peter Paul Zammit, for Ms Magro, said the accused had insulted his 73-year-old client, who uses a stick, arguing that Ms Magro’s reaction was simply a reaction to such an insult.

Ms Camenzuli remarked loudly that she had never seen her neighbour use a walking stick and her lawyer, Mark Busuttil, exclaimed: “Madoffi gejt (for heaven’s sake), keep quiet”.

This caused another outburst of laughter in the courtroom.

Dr Busuttil told the magistrate that it was clear that his client had been attacked for no reason.

Ms Camenzuli was acqu-itted on grounds of confli-ctingevidence.