A Tunisian man was remanded in custody this afternoon after pleading not guilty to beating up his wife when she accused him of being lazy. 

The 31-year-old man's name is not being published to protect the identity of the woman who appeared in court sporting a black eye and butterfly stitches over the lacerations on her face. The incident happened in their St Paul's Bay apartment at 6.30am on Monday in front of the couple's four-year-old daughter. 

He pleaded not guilty to seriously injuring his wife, threatening her and causing her to fear that violence will be used against her.

Magistrate Miriam Hayman appointed court expert Mario Scerri to examine the woman's injuries. She also accepted defence lawyer Stefano Filletti's request for the expert to also examine his client who had injuries compatible with bite marks. 

Prosecuting officer Godwin Scerri objected to the man's request for bail, saying there was a possibility that he would tamper with evidence or even abscond. 

Lawyer Franco Galea, appearing parte civile for the woman, said this incident was not the first, adding that other similar incidents, albeit of a lesser nature, happened in the past, both in Malta as well as in Tunisia, although they were never reported to the police. 

But Dr Filletti rebutted that there were no reports of any previous incidents so this claim was not backed by any evidence. 

Magistrate Hayman turned down the request but ordered the prosecution to produce all eyewitnesses at the first sitting.