A woman’s distressed call to the emergency helpline after she jumped into the sea to escape her alleged rapist, landed a youth in custody on Wednesday.

The call came through in the early hours of Tuesday morning when a young woman’s voice on the emergency line brought police rushing to the area of Valletta where the alleged victim had jumped into the waters.

She claimed that she had done so to escape “the physical and sexual abuse” of Qasem Saleh, a 20-year-old Syrian construction worker whom she had been dating. 

The woman claimed that the abuse was still ongoing when she jumped into the sea.

When police officers arrived at the site along Triq il-Mediterran at around 2.45am, they found the woman in the water.

The suspect was also in the area and put up no resistance as the officers approached.

The youth was taken into custody and questioned, cooperating all along, explained prosecuting Inspectors John Spiteri and Kevin Pulis. 

On Wednesday, he was escorted to court, pleading not guilty to rape, holding his alleged victim against her will and grievously injuring the woman with whom he was in a relationship. 

The accused’s lawyer, Mario Mifsud, made no request for bail at arraignment stage but asked the court to direct the prosecution to summon the alleged victim if possible at the first hearing.

Meanwhile, the defence also asked the court to recommend that the accused be detained at the Young Offenders’ Unit, given he was under 21. 

The court, presided over by magistrate Marse-Ann Farrugia, made the recommendation.

The court also issued a protection order in terms of which the accused was not to approach or communicate with the alleged victim in any manner, even while under preventive arrest and that order was to remain in force until final judgment. 

AG lawyer Sean Azzopardi assisted the prosecution.