A few days later, 21-year-old Jake Dalli Balzan and two other youths were charged in connection with the case.

In court, it emerged that the girl had claimed she was regularly extorted, starting with a 13-year-old classmate luring her into the school bathrooms and demanding €110 at knifepoint.

She stole the money from her brother’s saving but the “threats” continued, with her friend Dalli Balzan and an unnamed 19-year-old joining in, including through fake Instagram accounts.

She claimed that the threats escalated to the point that the 19-year-old held a gun to her head and demanded €90.

She said that the group eventually asked her for €400, and when she told them that she couldn’t afford it, the 19-year-old pointed a gun to head and threatened to kill her if she didn’t cough up by next week.

When she tried to leave, she was allegedly jumped by an additional three girls, where she was allegedly stabbed.

At some point, her father suspected theft and installed a CCTV camera at home, catching his daughter in the act. She confessed the situation about the alleged bullies to him, leading him to take up the case with the school principal.

Dalli Balzan alone was kept in custody and denied bail four times.

However, in the latest court sitting against him, it emerged that his accuser has been herself charged with filing a false report.

This time, Magistrate Kevan Azzopardi accepted his bail request against a €2,000 deposit and a personal guarantee of €18,000. He has also been ordered to sign the bail book twice a week at the Paola police station and to observe a curfew between 9pm and 7am.

David Bonello and Joseph Borda are Dalli Balzan’s defence lawyer.