A 30-year-old man from Birkirkara was found guilty on Tuesday of locking his wife in a room, threatening her, and being abusively overbearing.  

The man, whose name was banned from publication, was placed under a three-year probation order for causing his wife to fear for her safety and holding her against her will.  

He was first arraigned on October 2, 2020, by inspector Eman Hayman. 

The court had heard how the couple used to live with the woman’s parents, who both testified before magistrate Gabriella Vella that the accused was possessive and overbearing. 

The family had testified how the man would not let them see his children or help the woman, their daughter, in raising him.  

They had claimed he did not let the woman leave the house without his permission and had threatened to kill her or to take sole custody of their children. 

The court heard how he had once locked the woman and their children in a room while he went shopping.  

Although the husband denied the claims, Magistrate Vella concluded that his behaviour towards his wife was unacceptable. 

No husband should treat their partner that way, the magistrate said.

“No woman, more so a woman who has just given birth - and is working at the same time - should be abandoned in the way the accused effectively abandoned his wife through his retrograde views,” the court said.  

The accused, the court said, seemed more concerned with looking after his pigeons than his wife. 

Magistrate Vella said the accused seemed incapable of understanding what it means to be a husband and a father.  

Describing the woman as “devastated and desperate”, the magistrate found the accused guilty of causing her to fear for her safety, holding her against her will and threatening her parents.  

She found him not guilty of harassing his wife and her parents, and of threatening her through electronic means.

The magistrate ordered the man not to contact the woman, and to only communicate with her about their children. 

Correction 2.42pm A previous version referred to the couple's 'child', rather than 'children'.