An Englishman said yesterday he no longer wanted to remain the bail guarantor of a Somali national recently released from preventive custody after spending five years in prison awaiting trial.

He ignored bail curfew a couple of times

Jeremy Cope said that as Osman Omar was not abiding by his bail conditions by breaching curfew, he wanted out.

The 31-year-old had spent almost enough time in prison to serve a sentence for the charge he faces: complicity in the rape of a Maltese woman at the Marsa open centre in 2007.

Mr Omar was yesterday charged with breaching bail conditions on Monday

He was arraigned in 2007 but was only released on bail last March after Mr Cope and his partner, Michael Owen, pledged €4,000 as a personal guarantee. They also allowed him to stay at their Żejtun home.

Magistrate Consuelo Scerri Herrera yesterday heard Police Inspector Louise Calleja testify that, at 7.30 p.m. on Monday, Mr Omar went to the Żejtun police station when he was meant to be indoors. He told officers he wanted to sign some documents regarding the bail bond.

Mr Cope and Mr Owen then went to the police station saying it was not the first time Mr Omar had broken bail conditions.

Mr Cope told the magistrate he had known Mr Omar for about eight years because the Somali did some work around his house. He had helped him with legal expenses when he ended up in court for fighting with a bus driver, for which he was jailed for a month.

About five years ago, Mr Omar called and told him he was in jail again. Mr Cope and his partner visited him regularly.

Since March, when Mr Omar walked out of prison, he had ignored the curfew a couple of times, Mr Cope testified.

Both he and his partner tried to talk sense into Mr Omar on several occasions. But Monday was the final straw.

Lawyer Patrick Valentino, for Mr Omar, asked Mr Cope whether he ever expected anything in return from Mr Omar. He said he did not and had decided to help because he felt the system let Mr Omar down by denying him bail for five years.

Mr Omar was remanded in custody and judgement was put off until Tuesday.