A woman who alleged violent behaviour by her husband has told a court her parents "forced" her to make the claims and "threatened to kill her" if she backtracked.

Social workers assessed the risk to the woman was high following a four-hour interview with her at the domestic violence hub and police brought charges against her 25-year-old husband. 

But when the case came before a magistrate on Thursday, the construction worker's lawyers told the court his wife wished to drop the case.

Taking the witness stand, the young woman, speaking through an Arabic interpreter, said it was her parents in Germany who had hired a lawyer to file a domestic violence report against her Syrian husband in Malta. 

He denied charges of causing her fear of violence, slight injuries, insults and threats as well as subjecting her to acts of sexual connotations. 

The couple had been married for over a year. 

In her testimony, the woman said her parents in Germany “worked from there” so that her husband would end up in jail, she would be divorced and then would go back to her family abroad. 

“What about all the details you gave to social workers in a four-hour interview?” asked presiding magistrate Jean Paul Grech. 

The witness said that police had escorted her to the domestic violence hub at St Lucia. 

When social workers asked her questions, she told them that “some things happened, some others not.” 

The police were informed that her husband allegedly used to beat her even when the young couple lived in Germany. 

“At first there were no problems.” It was when her parents interfered that problems started, said the witness.

She would occasionally speak to her parents, telling them about “arguments” with her husband.

“But soon after, I would feel sorry. We made up.”

Threats to kill

Prosecuting inspector Sherona Buhagiar pointed out that the woman had appeared scared of her husband when speaking to police at the hub. 

She had alleged that her husband had threatened to kill her and a risk assessment resulted in a high score of 18. 

“When at the DV hub she spoke freely. No one forced her,” stressed the inspector. 

But the woman insisted that she was “forced” to say certain things. 

“By whom?”asked the court. 

“From Germany,” replied the woman. 

“They told me that ‘there are people in Malta and if you don’t say that, we will send them to kill you,’” said the witness. Pressed further, she said that the threats came from “parents and lawyer.” 

They had allegedly told her that “even if she went to the police, she would not be protected.” 

Warned by the court that she was under oath, the witness insisted on her version, denying that she had cried for joy when her husband was arrested. 

She was determined to drop her claims against her husband. 

However after hearing her testimony and in view of the circumstances of the case, the prosecution’s submissions and the social workers’ five-page report, the court was not convinced. 

The magistrate declared that the case was to proceed. 

The prosecutor said that on Wednesday evening the alleged victim had called to say that she wanted to speak “urgently.”

When she went to the prosecutor’s office, the woman said that she wanted to drop the case. 

She had explained that her parents did not approve of her decision to backtrack and had even blocked her.

Moreover her father had told her that he was coming to Malta to “talk to her,” said Buhagiar. 

A request for bail was objected to by the prosecution because they felt that there was interference by the defendant’s family. 

The alleged victim was currently living with her husband’s uncle and his mother had spoken to her, advising her not to move to a shelter. 

The defence rebutted that the defendant had an untainted record, had been living in Malta for nine years and his relatives would not be summoned as witnesses. He also had an alternative address. 

The court upheld the request, warning the man not to approach prosecution witnesses, and ordering him to sign the bail book twice a week, under a curfew between 8.30pm and 5.30am pay a deposit of €500 and under a personal guarantee of €3000.

The court also issued a protection order.

Arthur Azzopardi and Jacob Magri were defence lawyers.