DNA and sperm matches of two migrants charged with raping an Italian woman last month were found on her clothes and under her fingernails, a court heard yesterday.

Charles de Flavia, 62, who housed the accused – Abdiraman Abukar and Liban Mohamud, both 26 – said that Mr Abukar had boasted about raping the woman.

Mr de Flavia testified that he housed four migrants at his Floriana home.

Mr Abukar had lived there for barely two months and Mr Mohamud for four years.

He explained that the only reason he offered them accommodation was to help them out.

On March 24, he lent them his grey Kia Mentor and gave the keys to Mr Mohamud.

In the early hours of Monday morning, he began phoning them to get back home. He said he called Mr Abukar, who told him that they would remain out for another hour.

Mr de Flavia said, he made similar subsequent phone calls and always got the same reply.

The migrants finally got home at 4am and, on entering the flat, Mr Abukar boasted that “they” had sex with the woman three times.

Mr Abukar added that he held her neck while the rest hit her.

One of the other men did not have sex with the woman and Mr Abukar called him, in a derogatory tone, a homosexual.

Police Inspector Yvonne Farrugia, prosecuting, asked Mr de Flavia to confirm that Mr Abukar had described the attack by using the plural form of the vulgar Maltese word to describe having sex with the woman.

Mr de Flavia said this was not the case for Mr Abukar saidthat only he had sex with her three times.

Magistrate Carol Peralta warned him of the consequences of lying under oath after noting that the witness had changed his version.

Mr de Flavia continued to insist that he was telling the truth and the magistrate ordered that he be kept in the courthouse lock-up for 15 minutes to refresh his memory.

On his return, he still insisted that what he was saying was the truth and the magistrate said he felt that Mr de Flavia was trying to protect Mr Mohamud.

The magistrate ordered that he be kept at the police depot for 48 hours and investigated for perjury.

Magistrate Peralta then retired to his chambers and Mr de Flavia waited in the courtroom.

After a short while he decided to stick to his original version, that Mr Abukar had spoken in the plural, and apologised to the magistrate.

Mr de Flavia also said that he had seen Mr Mohamud holding a white HTC mobile phone, which later turned out to be the victim’s. He said that the phone was given to another migrant named Omar.

Earlier in the sitting, the prosecuting officer said that Mr Abukar was being very difficult with the escorting police officers and with the prison authorities, trying everything he could not to go to court.

Sitting in a wheelchair with a catheter bag in his hand, Mr Abukar denied that he had been difficult.

Magistrate Peralta warned him that he faced being imprisoned if he misbehaved.

The case continues.

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