Sexual harassment claims against a man serving time in prison over a stabbing in a Gozo courtroom were rejected by a magistrate who deemed the evidence produced by the prosecution insufficient.

In May 2010, a women filed a report against Paschalino Cefai, claiming he had made sexual advances against her will after she accepted his offer to take her back home from a bar in Marsalforn. While insisting that no form of abuse could ever be justified, Magistrate Joe Mifsud noted it was highly dangerous for somebody having been drinking at a bar to accept a lift from a stranger.

The court concluded the prosecution had failed to prove the case beyond a reasonable doubt.

Police Inspector Frank Anthony Tabone prosecuted.

Mr Cefai is facing charges of threatening to kill a magistrate and a police inspector.