A man charged with marital rape walked out of court a free man on Friday after his partner withdrew her accusations against him.

The man was first arraigned in court two weeks ago, when he pleaded not guilty to aggravated rape, causing fear of moral or physical violence and insulting and threatening his partner.

Those charges stemmed from an alleged incident involving the couple – who cannot be named by court order – dating back to 2023 but reported to the police some days before the man was arrested.

A court heard that the woman filed a police report about the 2023 incident after the two argued.

The man was remanded in custody following his arraignment, with the court turning down his request for bail on the basis that his partner had yet to testify.

When his case resumed two weeks later on Friday, his partner declared that she no longer wanted to proceed with the case and was withdrawing her allegations.

Prosecutors from the Attorney General’s office told the court they had no objection to the woman’s request for the case to be dropped.

The court, presided by Magistrate Lara Lanfranco, accepted the request. The woman had stated that no one had influenced or pressured her to drop the charges and that she wanted to move on with her life, the court noted.

Lawyer Darlene Grima and inspector Antonello Magri prosecuted.

Lawyers Franco Debono, Kathleen and Franklin Calleja Grima were defence counsel.

Lawyer Charlton Cascun appeared on the victim’s behalf.