A woman was found naked, bloody and doused in vinegar in a locked-up Mrieħel diner last month, a police sergeant said in court in a series of disturbing testimonies on Friday.

The shocking case involves 41-year-old chef and restaurant owner Keith Gravina, who is being charged with assaulting the woman, beating her up with a metal rod, holding her against her will and possession of cocaine.

He was also charged with disobeying police orders and breaching bail conditions from June 2022.

On 30th September, police got a tip off of screaming coming from Rosie’s Diner in Mrieħel, which was closed. The officers on the scene described hearing smashing glasses and punching coming from inside, as well as the screaming and yelling for help, “ajjut, ajjut”.

Although Gravina was ordered to open the door, the police were ignored, and the beaten continued.

RIU officers were called for back up, and it took half an hour for them to eventually open the shutter.

Gravina looked disorientated, simply saying “This is a game” repeatedly. He did not resist arrest.

The woman, on the other hand, was found naked on the floor, doused in vinegar with her face bloody. When asked if she was raped, she said she didn’t know.

She told police that Gravina “tortured her for hours, wrapped electrical cords around her and tried to plug them in and poured vinegar over her head”.

The woman, whose name was banned by court order, recalled that it was a first date with Gravina, and all went well until he took some drugs and was overcome by paranoia.

He allegedly began calling her “Roberta” and beating her up, becoming more violent if she tried to resist. He also allegedly tried to rape her with a metal rod.

During this shocking sitting, the woman’s request to testify by video call was upheld by the court, after she suffered a panic attack upon seeing him again.

The rest of the case will be heard behind closed doors.

The defence council is lawyer Matthew Xuereb while Jose Herrera, Martina Herrera and Alex Scerri Herrera are parte civile.

The diner has been temporarily closed “due to unforeseen circumstances”.

Follow for more court updates