A 39-year-old man was this morning acquitted of violently and indecently assaulting a 24-year-old woman at his flat on October 4 last year.

The court heard that the man, born in London and living in St Julian’s, got to know the woman on a film set. The accused was a member of the crew, while the victim was as film extra.

During a conversation on Facebook on October 4, the woman told the man that she was very tired and stressed out and he, being a qualified masseur, offered to give her a massage.

She told him she could not afford one and he said he would do it free of charge.

Once at his flat in St Julian’s, he asked the woman to undress, lie on the massage table and cover her private parts with a towel. He left the room until she did this and then gave her a full body massage.

But the woman claimed that, at one point, the man asked her to open her legs and he inserted a finger in her private part twice.

She said that at this point, she had told him they had both agreed this was not to take place.

She claimed that she stopped the massage, showered, dressed and then helped him with something on his computer before taking a bus home.

The accused denied he had ever touched the woman’s genitals and said that at the end of the massage she gave him a €10 tip to cover the cost of the massage oils he had used.

Magistrate Audrey Demicoli said she found it strange that a woman who was sexually assaulted took a shower at her abuser’s place and then helped him out on his computer. She said she also had very serious doubts about the woman’s credibility.

Lawyer Edward Gatt appeared for the man.