Court accepts Robert Aquilina's wife's request to stop domestic violence case

Updated 4pm

A court has accepted a request by Jeanette Aquilina, the wife of Repubblika co-founder Robert Aquilina to drop the domestic violence charges against him, saying that her words to police were being “exploited and manipulated” for the character assassination of her husband.

“I declare that I do not want to be, and will not be, a participant in the persecution of my husband Robert,” she wrote in the declaration presented to Magistrate Lara Lanfranco presiding over the Family Court.

In a strong-worded declaration, Jeanette Aquilina wrote: “Contrary to what is being reported in the Labour Party media, my request [to drop the court case] did not constitute forgiveness. The truth is that the problems between me and my husband are of a family nature and not a criminal one, and are primarily the result of the high stress we have long been under because of Robert’s involvement in public life.”

She declared that, on May 30, the couple had an argument that involved shouting. This drew the attention of the fixed-point police officer stationed outside their home for security reasons.

“I declare that at no point during the argument did we resort to violence towards one another,” she wrote.

The incident drew public attention when the media reported that, although the officer was initially informed there was no need to intervene, Aquilina’s wife later emerged and requested assistance. Aquilina was subsequently questioned by police at the Floriana headquarters.

He denied any wrongdoing and requested that their privacy be respected. Sources at the time indicated he would be summoned to court on domestic violence charges.

In the days that followed, Aquilina resigned from the rule of law NGO Repubblika and suspended his roles within Fondazione Falcone, including his membership in its general council.

On June 10, Jeanette Aquilina asked the court to stop criminal proceedings against her husband. In the court declaration, she wrote: “I declare that it is my wish and that of my husband Robert to leave these days behind us and move forward in the way we deem best for ourselves and our three children.”

She went on to add: “What I said to the police is being exploited and manipulated for the persecution and character assassination of my husband Robert.”

She expressed regret that their marriage had been exposed to the public and condemned what they described as police leaks to the media, stating these were intended only to cause harm to them and their three young children.

'Continuing this case would benefit no-one'

In her decree, magistrate Lara Lanfranco, accepted Jeanette Aquilina’s request.

The magistrate noted that the police commissioner, on Wednesday, filed a motion asking the court to hear additional witnesses before deciding whether to accept Jeanette Aquilina’s request for renunciation.

These witnesses would testify about the merits of the case.

The court noted that whenever it felt the need to hear witnesses before making a decision on renunciation, such hearings were ordered at the court’s discretion.

The court declared that if it were to accept this request now, it would be “counterproductive and contrary to the spirit of the law,” as the court must protect the best interests of the complainant.

In this case, after hearing Jeanette Aquilina’s request, the court did not feel the need to conduct this additional exercise and therefore rejected the police commissioner’s request.

Regarding Jeanette Aquilina’s testimony, the court said it had “no doubt that [she] was genuine” and that no one tried to influence her decision.

The court believed she made the request with the best interests in mind to improve her relationship with her husband and to protect the interests of their three children.

“Continuing this case would benefit no party involved and would only cause considerable disruption to the family,” the judge said.

Therefore, the court ordered that proceedings against Robert Aquilina be dropped.