A court has granted bail to a man charged with violently resisting and slightly injuring a police officer who stopped him for running a red traffic light.

The 38 year-old, from Syria, was arraigned before magistrate Nadine Lia this morning by Inspector Robert Vella.

Inspector Vella explained how a traffic policeman on duty at Blata l-Bajda had noticed the accused running a red light and had stopped him. An argument then flared up, in which the man allegedly struck the policeman, causing him to suffer slight injuries, before driving off. The accused was arrested when his car was later stopped in Marsa.

The accused, a building contractor, pleaded not guilty to charges of attacking or violently resisting a public servant in the line of duty, insulting and threatening the police officer and slightly injuring him.

The inspector said that after the man was arrested, he had to be rushed to hospital as he was suffering from very high blood pressure.

The accused is a Maltese citizen and married to a Maltese, said the inspector. He has children here and a held down a steady job.

His lawyer, Mario Mifsud, explained that the man had been in a panicked state because his wife was unwell and had cooperated fully with the police after his arrest.

Mifsud requested bail, saying the matter was an "unfortunate incident" and that the man's family needed him.

The court granted the man bail, ordering him to sign a bail book weekly and observe a curfew. Bail was secured by a deposit of €500 and a personal guarantee of €3,000.