A young man, facing criminal proceedings for having allegedly raped and harassed a work colleague, has been granted bail on his second attempt – the first having been turned down.

Marcel Andreas Ekvall Parada, a 24-year old Swedish national, residing at Sliema, working in the local financial sector, had been remanded in custody after pleading not guilty upon his arraignment almost a month ago.

The man had been further charged with the unauthorised possession of cocaine.

A first request for bail had been turned down by the court after strong objections by the prosecution on the grounds that the alleged victim was still to testify, besides the fact that the woman and her alleged aggressor shared the same workplace and common friends.

After hearing the victim testify via video conference, the court, presided over by magistrate Marse-Ann Farrugia, appointed another sitting to hear the testimony of a housemate of the victim.

A fresh request for bail was upheld against a deposit of €8,000 and a personal guarantee of €22,000.

The court also issued a protection order in favour of the alleged victim and her housemate, prohibiting the accused from approaching Swieqi and the alleged victim’s workplace.

Inspectors Paula Ciantar and Joseph Xerri prosecuted. Lawyers Alfred Abela, Arthur Azzopardi and Rene Darmanin were defence counsel.