A man from Marsascala has been denied bail after he was accused of attacking and slightly injuring his partner at their home in Marsascala on Saturday, as his lawyer accused the police of failing to actually investigate the incident.

The 38 year-old accused, who is not being named in order to protect the identity of the children, was arraigned before duty magistrate Astrid May Grima this afternoon, charged with slightly injuring his partner and causing her to fear he would be violent towards her. He was also accused of relapsing.

Lawyer Noel Cutajar, legal aid to the man, lambasted the prosecution, who he said had simply based themselves on the woman's report and not investigated. There were three eyewitnesses to the event - the couple's children -  and none of them had been spoken to by the police, he said.

"Had the police asked the children about the dynamics of the incident, all this could have been avoided," added the lawyer, explaining that the couple had a history of reporting each other to the police for nothing. The woman's injuries were simply areas of tenderness, her medical certificate read, he explained.

The accused had gone to the woman's residence to give her a cheque to pay for her notary fees on a property purchase, said the lawyer, and an argument had ensued. The accused wept silently as his lawyer spoke.

She has also taken items from his house he said, asking the police to investigate this.

Inspector Joanna Piscopo, prosecuting, objected to the defence's request for bail, telling the court that the police couldn't leave the victim at risk. Officers had found him intoxicated and carrying a knife, she said. "He was not in a pretty state." Witnesses were yet to testify, she added.

"No tests were taken to establish his state," retorted the lawyer. "He didn't attack anyone with the knife, he was in the kitchen."

The court however, denied bail. It directed the Director of prisons to order a medical examination of the accused and to provide all other necessary assistance should he be found to be dependent on drugs or other substances.