Malta Screwdriver Attack: Chilling Domestic-Violence Case Sparks National Soul-Searching

Screwdriver Threat Shines Harsh Light on Malta’s Hidden Domestic Violence Crisis

A 42-year-old man has been charged with holding a screwdriver to his partner’s neck and threatening to kill her after she refused to have sex with him, a Valletta court heard on Tuesday. The accused, whose name cannot be published by order of the court, was arraigned on charges of attempted grievous bodily harm, making threats to kill, domestic violence and holding the woman against her will inside their Żabbar flat.

Prosecuting inspector John Spiteri told magistrate Claire Stafrace Zammit that police were called to the couple’s home in the early hours of Sunday morning by neighbours who heard “a woman screaming for mercy”. Officers found the alleged victim, a 38-year-old Maltese mother of two, with red marks on her neck and shoulders. She told police the argument began when she declined sex because she was exhausted after a double shift at a St Julian’s hotel. “He said I was his woman and had no right to say no,” the inspector quoted the victim as saying. “Then he grabbed the screwdriver from a DIY drawer and pressed it under my chin, yelling that he would ‘send me to the afterlife’ if I didn’t obey.”

The accused, who works as a delivery driver, pleaded not guilty and was granted bail against a €5,000 deposit and a personal guarantee of €10,000. A protection order was also issued, banning him from approaching within 100 metres of the woman or their children. Outside the courtroom, the woman’s mother clutched her grandchildren and whispered a warning: “We won’t be silenced this time.”

The case has jolted Malta just weeks after the island marked the one-year anniversary of the femicide of Bernice Cassar, shot in broad daylight after repeated police reports of harassment. While Malta’s parliament passed the long-awaited Istanbul Convention ratification in 2023, front-line NGOs say enforcement remains patchy and cultural stigma still deters victims from speaking out. “We receive 30 calls a week on our domestic-violence helpline; half hang up before finishing the sentence,” said Simone Cini, coordinator at the shelter Dar Merħba Bik. “This screwdriver incident is chilling because it shows how everyday objects become weapons of control inside our own homes.”

Local data backs up her fears. The Malta Police Force handled 1,347 domestic-violence reports in 2023, a 12% rise on the previous year, yet only 8% resulted in court action, according to the Commission on Gender-Based Violence and Domestic Violence. Critics blame under-staffed vice squads and a legal labyrinth that can take two years before a protection order is confirmed. “Victims are told to collect medical certificates, witness statements, even photos, while still living with the abuser,” lawyer and women’s-rights advocate Dr Lara Dimitrijevic told Hot Malta. “By the time a screwdriver is at her throat, the system has already failed her multiple times.”

In Żabbar, the accused’s street remained eerily quiet on Tuesday evening. An elderly neighbour, who gave her name only as Maria, admitted she had heard “shouting for months” but never dialled 112. “You don’t want to poke your nose in couple’s business,” she said, eyes downcast. Her reluctance mirrors national surveys: 54% of Maltese respondents in a 2023 Eurobarometer study agreed that “domestic violence is a private matter”.

Yet change is stirring. Parish priest Fr Joe Borg used Sunday’s homily at Żabbar’s St James church to condemn “the sin of silence”, while local band club volunteers are distributing flyers with the free national helpline 179. Meanwhile, the Malta Hotels and Restaurants Association announced it will train hotel managers to spot abuse among staff, recognising that tourism workers—like the alleged victim—often endure late shifts and financial dependence that predators exploit.

As the accused returns to court next month, the woman he allegedly threatened is trying to rebuild. Dar Merħba Bik has found her a temporary apartment in the south of Malta, funded by an EU social-bond scheme. Her employer, the AXM Group, has transferred her to day shifts and granted paid leave for counselling. “I want my daughters to know Mummy said no—and lived,” she told supporters. Her courage, campaigners insist, must become Malta’s wake-up call. Until neighbours dial 112, courts fast-track protection and men stop treating “no” as a provocation, screwdrivers will still lurk in kitchen drawers like ticking time-bombs.

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