Man not guilty of raping co-worker

A Swedish man has been acquitted by a Maltese court of charges that he raped and harassed his female colleague five years ago.

The magistrate ruled that the man’s version of the events that took place in a Swieqi apartment in 2019 was more credible than that given by his accuser.

Marcel Andres Ekvall Parada, 30, who lived in Sliema, had been accused of raping the victim, harassing her and being in possession of cocaine in circumstances that indicated it was not for his personal use in January 2019.

Police were informed that there was a woman in Triq is-Sidra in Swieqi who needed help after she was allegedly raped.

The victim alleged that she was living with another man and met the accused. While they were drinking together, the accused drank heavily and allegedly consumed cocaine. She also explained that she went to Paceville with him and that the accused did not want her to have anything to do with other man. She said that when they returned to her place, Ekvall Parada raped her.

When the police asked the victim if the accused had behaved in an indecent manner with her, she recounted how he had once said indecent words to her and grabbed her from behind.

When the accused was asked to explain what happened, he confirmed that he had been drinking heavily but also said that when he was in the room with the victim, she had shown him signs that she wanted to have sex with him. He also said that at one stage the victim got angry, went into the room of the man he was living with and eventually left the place itself.

The Court presided over by Magistrate Marsanne Farrugia considered that both the accused and the victim gave different versions of the night of the incident and there were some discrepancies in the way they gave their testimonies. The Court also mentioned that the victim initially said that the accused penetrated her but later said that he tried to penetrate her, a fact that the doctors who examined her pointed out that there was no male DNA on the victim. 

Regarding the harassment charge, the Court said that it found no evidence of this and that if the victim was afraid of the man, she would not have invited him to her place. Therefore, the magistrate acquitted Ekvall Parada of all charges brought against him.

The prosecution was led by Inspector Joseph Xerri.

Lawyers Alfred Abela and Rene Darmanin appeared for the accused.