A bus driver, Marco Borg, who had been sacked by Arriva for an assault on two young women, was today found guilty of slightly injuring them but acquitted of attempted serious injury.

He was fined €1,000.

The incident happened in Floriana in early February 2012 when Mr Borg was off duty.

People who said they were present during the incident had reported at the time that he had assumed the women were lesbians and asked them to refrain from kissing. He allegedly had asked the women not to sit together and “not to do these things in front of people”.

According to amateur footage, the bus driver, who was in uniform and returning home after a day’s work, was  heard asking them to behave properly. One of the women answered that she lived in a democratic country.

The women, Tiffany Gatt and Sylvana Galea, testifying in court, denied that they had done anything wrong.

Ms Gatt said that the only reason she had her arm around Ms Galea was because the bus was full and she had held on to her friend in order not to fall off the seat.

She said that Mr Borg told her to sit properly but they ignored him as they were doing nothing wrong. As the journey continued, he began shouting and raising his fist to Sylvana's face.

Ms Gatt said that Mr Borg grabbed her and then pushed her to the floor.

On the other hand, Mr Borg denied ever hitting the girls and said that he only showed his fist to them. He said that they were kissing and touching themselves intimately.

He said he was taught to stop anything wrong that he saw on the bus.

Magistrate Neville Camilleri said Mr Borg should have contacted the police had he thought that something untoward was happening on the bus.

Lawyers Lucio and Michael Schriha appeared for Mr Borg.