Man jailed for repeated attempted rape at massage parlour

A man has been jailed for eight years after he was found guilty of repeatedly attempting to rape a masseuse and unlawfully detaining her in a Birkirkara massage parlour. 

Harona Conateh, 33, from The Gambia was convicted by the criminal court following a report by the therapist who said she had been attacked on separate occasions in the parlour where she worked. 

The victim, a Chinese national, had contacted police in 2024 after recognising the man from news reports about court cases involving the alleged serial rapist.

Conateh also faces separate accusations of raping and sexual assaulting three other therapists in Sliema and Birkirkara. One of those alleged victims described him as a “very bad man” who attacked “many girls”.

In this case the victim described how he dragged her into a room, locked it, threatened her with a piece of glass and attempted to rape her.

In its judgment, the court said prosecutors had proved beyond reasonable doubt that Conateh had attempted to rape the victim during two separate incidents and had detained her against her will while doing so.

Key witness evidence

The case centred largely on the testimony of the therapist, who gave evidence by video link. According to the victim’s report, she had told the police that he had visited the massage parlour on multiple occasions, initially as a client, before turning aggressive and demanding sexual acts in May 2024.

She recalled how he removed her clothes, hit her in the face and sexually assaulted her. She told the court he tried several times to penetrate her vaginally and anally, but did not succeed because she resisted physically.

The court said that description amounted in law to attempted rape.

A central issue for the court was whether Conateh had been correctly identified as the attacker. The prosecution relied heavily on the victim’s evidence because there was no medical evidence presented and the shop’s CCTV system was said not to have been functioning.

Conateh denied ever going to the shop and said he did not know the victim.

But the court accepted her identification evidence, noting that she had first recognised the suspect from media photographs after he was arrested in connection with another case. Judges said she later identified him in court without hesitation.

The judgment also said the physical description she gave before seeing him in the courtroom matched the accused.

Translation difficulties

In assessing her credibility, the court acknowledged that there were discrepancies between what she told police and what she later told the court.

In her original report, she told police that  at one point when she refused, he threatened her with a piece of glass and out of fear, she gave in and he raped her. In court she said penetration had not occurred because she had resisted.

The court said that difference may have been the result of translation problems rather than deliberate inconsistency.

It also noted difficulties surrounding the initial police report. The victim told officers she had delayed reporting the incidents because she did not speak English and feared she would not be understood. A friend accompanied her to the police station and communication took place partly through translation tools on mobile phones.

Judges said those language barriers meant some details in the original report had to be treated with caution. Even so, they found that the substance of her account remained consistent and credible.

The court also rejected the defence position that the accusation was unreliable simply because it rested mainly on one witness. It referred to the principle in Maltese criminal law that the testimony of a single witness can be sufficient if believed by the court.

Dragged into massage room

On the unlawful detention charge, the court said the victim's evidence showed clearly that she had tried to escape during both incidents but had been prevented from doing so. In one episode, she said she was dragged back into the massage room. In another, the man allegedly locked the door to stop her leaving.

The court was not persuaded, however, that the prosecution had proved grievous injury. While accepting that she had been struck in the face, the court said there was insufficient evidence about the precise nature and consequences of those blows.

Similarly, it ruled that although the victim said the attacker threatened her with a piece of glass, that did not amount to proof of carrying a weapon requiring a police licence under the law cited by the prosecution. It therefore acquitted him of charges relating to grievous bodily harm and possession of a weapon, since the weapon possession could not be proven.

The accused denied ever visiting the massage parlour and claimed he could not remember the events. The court rejected his version as not credible, as he often said he “did not remember” the events, instead of firmly denying them.

 He also claimed to have a very limited lifestyle, simply going to work and back home. The court found his claim not credible and said he had no witnesses to support his version.

When sentencing Conateh, the court said it had considered the seriousness of the offences and his lack of remorse. It also took into account that he had no criminal record in Malta for the period he had spent in the country.

Alongside the eight-year prison term, the court ordered that he be barred for 20 years from professional activities involving direct or regular contact with children, starting from the expiry or remission of his sentence. That order is to be entered into his criminal record.

A restraining order was also issued in favour of the victim.

Magistrate Marse-Ann Farrugia presided over the case. Police Inspectors Wayne Buhagiar and Clayton Camilleri prosecuted.