Woman says she hid in field to evade loan shark

A woman yesterday told a court how she ran away from home and lived in a field for four days because she was scared of the man she had borrowed money from.

Maria Fatima Mifsud told Magistrate Saviour Demicoli how she first borrowed Lm3,000 from George Xuereb at 100 per cent interest. As time passed she could no longer cope with payments and after several threats she was scared and ran away from home.

Mifsud testified in the compilation of evidence against Xuereb, 38, of Safi and Connie Lia, 32, of Zurrieq who are pleading not guilty to usury, loaning money against interest without a licence and living off the earnings of prostitution.

Mifsud said she initially borrowed money from Twanny Il-Bona. About three-and-a-half years ago she mentioned her debt to Lia and the latter told her that Xuereb loaned money. She therefore borrowed money from him to pay Twanny Il-Bona.

Mifsud, who said she is illiterate, first borrowed Lm3,000 from Xuereb. They went to a notary where she signed a contract that laid down she was borrowing Lm6,000. Xuereb and Lia were both signatories.

She explained she paid Xuereb Lm150 a month out of her social security benefits. She also paid him Lm30 a week for a second loan.

Mifsud said that when she missed a Lm150 payment Xuereb charged her Lm80 interest. Over the past eight months she had only paid the Lm80 interest because she could not cope with the Lm150 payments.

She said that Xuereb and Lia often called at her house to collect the money and sometimes they went to Marsa where she prostituted herself and took the money she had just earned.

When failing to pay on time Xuereb used to become angry and threatened her. Once, she said, he threatened to throw her into a valley and Lia had calmed him down.

Mifsud testified that she gave the money she received as her children's allowance and sickness relief to third parties to whom she also owed money.

Eventually she realised that according to Xuereb's accounts book her debt had risen to Lm15,000 and she became very worried. Then on December 6, Lia went to her house at about 8 a.m.

"She told me to prepare the Lm150 for George and told me not to make him angry. But I did not have the money.

"At about 1 p.m. I asked a woman to lend me some money so I could pay George but she did not and told me I could not keep on living like this.

"I got scared so I ran away... I did not know I would be reported missing in the media. I found a small field and hid there for four days with a bottle of water to live on," she said.

Mifsud said she eventually called the Care On Line number 179 where she was given help.

Earlier, Police Inspector Joseph Cordina, prosecuting, gave an overview of the investigations that led to the arrest of Xuereb and Lia.

Following a request by Dr Franco Debono, for Xuereb, and Dr Raphael Fenech Adami, for Lia, the magistrate granted them bail against a Lm1,000 deposit and a personal guarantee of Lm4,000 each.