A software engineer charged with attacking police officers was on Tuesday granted bail against a personal guarantee of €8,000 after pleading not guilty to the charges.

The 55-year-old from Santa Venera was also ordered to submit to psychiatric treatment, sign the bail book twice a week and not speak to prosecution witnesses.

He was accused of using violence against public officials, violently resisting and insulting the police, slightly injuring two police officers, breaching the peace, disobeying police orders, threatening and harassing two neighbours, carrying a firearm without a licence and damaging property.

The accused’s lawyer, Jason Grima, told the court that when his client saw the uniformed men outside his house he asked to see their police ID cards as he did not believe they were officers.

“The issue escalated from there… he is very afraid that evidence he wishes to exhibit in another case will be taken from his house.”

Dr Grima contested the validity of the man’s arrest, arguing that the police needed a warrant to search a property over a threat.

But Inspector Robert Vella, prosecuting together with Inspectors Elliott Magro and Wayne Camilleri, said the police only wanted to speak to the accused, not search his house.

The incident began when two neighbours reported him for continuous harassment over a number of months, Inspector Vella said adding that the accused was charged in separate proceedings with leaving a shotgun cartridge outside his neighbour’s front door.

The parties approached the bench where they privately discussed the case at length.

The court, presided over by magistrate Claire Stafrace Zammit, ruled the arrest valid and justified.