Former Sliema deputy mayor Cyrus Engerer has been acquitted of circulating pornographic material and computer misuse.

Mr Engerer had pleaded not guilty to distributing obscene images of his former boyfriend and to computer misuse. His case was heard behind closed doors.

Although the former boyfriend had dropped the charges against Mr Engerer, the police acted ex-officio given the nature of the charges.

Magistrate Audrey Demicoli said the circumstantial evidence presented in court did not prove with mathematical precision that it was Mr Engerer who had created the e-mail account from which the e-mails were sent.

The evidence could not be described as unequivocal because while the court, on a basis of probability, could conclude that it was Mr Engerer who sent the e-mails, the proof it had in hand could not satisfy the law.

The court said no proof was presented to show that Mr Engerer was the only person who had access to his own computer. Moreover, it could not exclude with certainty that third parties who were also in the photos also had copies.

The case dates back to January 2010 when a police report was filed by the victim complaining that compromising images of him were stolen from his computer and circulated via e-mail to his employers and friends.

The police had filed charges in July 2011, days after Mr Engerer left the Nationalist Party in the wake of then Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi’s decision to vote against the divorce Bill in Parliament.

The Justice and Home Affairs Minister ordered an inquiry following claims that the police action against Mr Engerer, and also against his father who was investigated in connection with drugs, could have been politically motivated.

Lawyers Franco Debono and Marion Camilleri appeared for Mr Engerer.