Gozo teacher found guilty of defiling girl

A Gozitan teacher was yesterday given a suspended jail term for defiling a 16-year-old girl and, in a separate case, a man was jailed for three years after video taping sexual relations with a 15-year-old girl.

In both cases, another teacher at the girls' school encouraged the abuse, the courts heard.

Joseph Portelli, 48, of Marsalforn was given a two-year jail term suspended for three years for defiling the 16-year-old in September 1997.

Magistrate Giovanni Grixti, who presided over the two cases in the Gozo law courts, found Mr Portelli guilty of the crime after hearing how the 16-year-old and her friend would frequent the apartment of Joseph Borg - a teacher at their school.

She explained that her friend used to have sexual relations with Mr Borg while she would have sexual relations with Mr Portelli, a teacher at the same school.

In the other case, John Buttigieg, 42, of Qala was jailed for three years for defiling the 15-year-old girl and video taping sexual acts between them in May 1998.

Magistrate Grixti heard how the girl's father had filed a police report after his daughter went on an errand but failed to return home.

Following an intensive search, the next morning the police came across the girl in Mgarr. She had just come off the Gozo ferry.

The girl explained that the previous evening she went on an errand for her mother when she met a certain Joe Borg who taught at her school.

Mr Borg asked her to get into the car and when she did he took her to meet Mr Buttigieg and told her to pleasure him.

She explained that Mr Buttigieg video taped the sexual acts they engaged in. She fell asleep and in the morning Mr Buttigieg took her down to the Gozo ferry and told her to cross over to Malta and return to Gozo so that it would seem like she had gone to Malta during the time she was away from home.

The police examined several video tapes and photographs found in Mr Buttigieg's possession and saw that he featured in the tapes with the girl and other persons.

On evaluating the evidence the magistrate found both men guilty of the charges brought against them.

The names of the girls are not being published by court order. Police Inspectors Paul Vassallo and Sharon Tanti prosecuted.