A particularly messy separation, as a magistrate defined it, led a woman to falsely report that her estranged husband had injured her and that he kept pornographic material involving children on his computer.

When asked to explain why she had behaved in such a manner, the woman said she was following the instructions of the private investigator she had hired.

It resulted during the long court case, spread over 39 sittings, including 10 when evidence was produced, that in the summer of 2005 the woman broke into her estranged husband's office, took his computer and other personal items and then went to the police saying the hard drive contained pornographic material involving children.

She also told the police her estranged husband had seriously injured her during an argument outside the Naxxar police station when the two met by accident. She later confessed that she had been hurt when she fell while she was chasing him because he had taken her bag, and that she did not know what was on the hard-drive.

Magistrate Anthony Vella noted that the woman had tried to shrug off any responsibility by saying she had acted on instructions by her private investigator. This still held her responsible for any action she had taken against her estranged husband, the court said.

After taking into consideration that the accused has a clean police record she was given a six-month jail term suspended for two years.

Lawyer Kenneth Grima was defence counsel.