Criminal proceedings against a civil servant charged with making false claims against his estranged wife took an unexpected twist today when the court ordered the Police Commissioner to investigate allegations of an abortion.

The separated couple are currently locked in a dispute regarding a joint property. During one particular mediation sitting before the family court, the man had allegedly hinted that his former wife had terminated a pregnancy.

The comments brought the mediation sitting to an abrupt end and prompted the woman to file a police complaint against her former husband.

The court, presided over by Magistrate Joseph Mifsud, heard the woman testify about the events before the mediator where her former husband's insinuations had led her to seek action for defamation.

Taking the witness stand, her former husband explained how a third party, who had allegedly been in a relationship with the woman, had told him about the alleged abortion.

The court declared that the accused was to be acquitted of having defamed his estranged wife on the basis of the conflicting evidence put forward. However, in light of the revelations made in open court, the magistrate requested the Commissioner of Police to investigate the allegations regarding his estranged spouse.