A man who was allegedly involved in hiding the body of murder victim Eleanor Mangion Walker landed behind bars on Wednesday over unrelated domestic violence charges.

Eleanor Mangion Walker's lifeless body had been found in a disused Qormi warehouse on July 3, 2016.

Kristjan Zekic, also known as Adhamjon Niyasov, 38, living in Qawra, pleaded not guilty to having caused his partner to fear violence as well as being in unlawful possession of a firearm. He was also accused of breaching five bail decrees with bail bonds totalling some €80,000.

Prosecuting inspector Godwin Scerri told a court that the woman’s report had alerted the police to “a very serious case of domestic violence.”

He objected to bail, saying that not only was the alleged victim still to testify, but Zekic had already been granted bail on five occasions.

The couple lived at the same apartment and this meant that there would be contact between the alleged aggressor and his victim, the inspector insisted.

Lawyer Ezekiel Psaila countered that there had been no conviction in any of the alleged cases of breach of bail. The bail bonds of some €80,000 made that sum “an even greater deterrent,” he said.

As for evidence which the prosecution claimed to have been found at the couple’s apartment, the lawyer pointed out that the firearm had been discovered inside the woman’s room. Zekic claimed he had never seen it before.

Moreover, Zekic had been targeted by false domestic violence charges previously, the lawyer said, prompting Inspector Scerri to remark that “someone had decided to withdraw the testimony.”

Magistrate Victor George Axiak turned down the request for bail stating that the court had “serious reservations” on the trustworthiness of the accused and his ability to adhere to bail conditions.

There was the added real risk of tampering with evidence and the fact that civilian witnesses were still to testify.