A man who allegedly threatened his pregnant estranged ex when he followed her outside her home with a penknife in hand, was denied bail upon arraignment on Tuesday.

The 29-year old Egyptian plasterer from Qormi was arrested after the woman he had married by Islamic rite at a local mosque, phoned Cospicua police station on Sunday evening to report that her ex had turned up outside her door.

The man was allegedly threatening her, the woman claimed.

Officers responded to that call and ordered the man to leave.

But minutes later, when the woman stepped outside on her way to the shops, her ex re-appeared and allegedly followed her with a penknife in his hand.

When contacted by the police Domestic Violence Unit, the man did not go to their offices as directed.

The following day, he responded to a call by prosecuting Inspector Omar Zammit.

On Tuesday, the man was charged with causing his ex to fear violence, insulting and threatening her as well as relapsing.

He pleaded not guilty.

When making submissions on bail, defence lawyer Noel Bianco said that the accused happened to have a job in the area where his ex lived.

That was when he had seen the woman and asked whether she needed anything.

“There were no weapons,” added the lawyer, stressing that the accused had a stable job and a fixed address.

He would abide by any court order if granted bail, including a Protection Order and an order not to go to Cospicua.

The prosecution objected, explaining that during a police search they had found a penknife in the accused’s possession that was identified by his ex.

No charges had been issued in that respect because the knife was 7 centimetres, namely one centimetre short of the statutory length which would have made its possession liable to prosecution.

Moreover, the victim was still to testify and had told police that she was scared of her ex.

The man had switched off his mobile to evade calls from the police and had subsequently used a third party’s phone to call the victim.

He later remarked that had he known what the police wanted him for, he would not have gone, added the prosecutor.

After hearing submissions the court, presided over by Magistrate Joseph Gatt, turned down bail in view of the nature of the charges and the fact that the accused was not deemed sufficiently trustworthy.

The court also issued a Protection Order in favour of the victim, warning the accused that he could not communicate with her in any way, risking a €7,000 fine or a two-year jail term or both if he breached that order.

Inspector Omar Zammit prosecuted.

Lawyer Noel Bianco was defence counsel.