Updated 2.15pm with prosecution's remarks

A man accused of raping his girlfriend’s mother in a demonic act took advantage of an entire family, manipulating them just to satisfy his sexual fantasies, a prosecution lawyer said on Friday. 

Angele Vella from the Attorney General's office insisted that the evidence was clear and showed how the 22-year-old had taken advantage of a vulnerable family, using what he claimed was the devil's voice to terrorise them. 

Vella was giving her concluding statement to the court, following a four-day trial of a man who stands charged with rape and violence by seeking to control his then-minor girlfriend and her family, committing sexual abuse against her mother and her sister. 

Names have been banned from publication by court order. 

A verdict by Madam Justice Consuelo Scerri Herrera is expected at 7pm on Friday. If the accused is found guilty, he will also be sentenced at that time.

The court earlier this week heard testimony from the mother and her two daughters who described episodes of sexual abuse, beatings and 'torture', including physical abuse involving a broomstick. 

Witnesses told the court that the accused would pin the blame for the violence on a ‘demon’ who had supposedly entered the house. The accused opted not to testify.

The defence, on the other hand, has argued that the entire case is built on sham allegations and that prosecutors failed to produce “a shred” of evidence proving any of the charges. 

In her concluding remarks, prosecutor Vella noted how one of the alleged victims testified that the abuse began when they all went to watch a horror film together. From then on, the accused took advantage of their terror, psychologically bullying and manipulating them and making them believe that there was the devil in their house, she said.

She heaped praise on the victims for having the courage to expose what had really happened. Their demeanour during their testimonies shows the trauma they had gone through, she said. 

Vella said the victims, especially the mother, were mentally vulnerable and the psychological effect of the abuse sent the mother in and out of Mount Carmel Hospital. 

The lawyer said the prosecution had proved the case beyond reasonable doubt, with evidence satisfying all the elements of the crimes of which he is accused. 

"This case is so obscene, simply to satisfy his sexual fantasies, that he deserves to be found guilty and given the maximum prison term. The victims said he was smirking and looked entertained during the abuse. This is what this case all about. He manipulated them to satisfy his whims," she said. 

Defence: Entire case is a 'total invention'

But defence lawyer Mario Mifsud asked the court to clear his client of all charges, in view of the deficiencies in the prosecution's case. 

The claims, Mifsud told the court were all a "total invention".

"We heard so many lies (by the alleged victims) that we cannot even determine who is the bigger liar between the mother and the daughters," Mario Mifsud insisted in his concluding remarks on the case. 

As he poked holes in the prosecution's case, Mifsud said there were "serious doubts" about the testimonies of the alleged victims and that these doubts failed to prove the case beyond reasonable doubt as required by law. 

Mifsud insisted that there was "not a shred of scientific evidence" to prove the alleged rape and that the prosecution had failed to bring other evidence such as the bed sheets or a doctor's examination.

Broomsticks presented as evidence did not have a shred of DNA evidence to prove that they had been used or penetrated anyone's bodily cavity, he added.

"The accused is the victim of this satanic game that the women started and that got out of hand. There is no evidence of illegal arrest because all witnesses confirmed they could leave whenever they wanted. This is a serious deficiency in the case," he said. 

"The alleged victims concocted this entire story to shift the blame on my client. There is no scientific evidence that confirms any part of the story. And the doubt should go in favour of my client," he said.