A police constable who locked his partner in pitch darkness in an Mtaħleb countryside room has been put on probation after a court declared that he needed help for alcohol abuse and depression.

The case happened on the night between December 29 and 30, 2021.

The court heard that the 44-year-old had driven to the room with his partner, as they did every day. Following an argument he locked her in the room at about 1.15am. Although the padlock was not locked, the door could not be opened from the inside.

Screaming and crying, the agitated woman managed to phone the Rabat police station and her father to raise the alarm.

The constable himself called the police station to describe what had happened and seek help. He claimed he had locked the woman because he feared she would hit him with some of the farming tools. 

The police went to the room, where they released the woman.

The constable told the police they used to have many arguments and she previously pointed a shotgun and hurled a stone at him and even poured fuel on his bed. He also claimed she was mentally unstable.

She refused to testify during the court proceedings, saying she had forgiven the accused and they made up on the day after the incident. She also asked for the court proceedings to be discontinued. 

Magistrate Rachel Montebello observed that this was a case of domestic violence but said the accused's claims that he had been threatened by his partner were puerile and had not been proven.

The magistrate noted, however, that the accused had himself called the police. 

Still, this was a crime that he, as a police officer, was duty-bound to prevent.

The magistrate said that based on the evidence, she did not view the accused as a criminal, but as somebody who needed help for alcohol abuse and depression. He had undergone a rehabilitation programme since the case and was continuing to undergo treatment and doing well.  

He was therefore put under probation for three years.  

Lawyer Kris Busietta was defence counsel.