A man accused of raping his wife while the couple were undergoing separation proceedings was denied bail on Sunday.

The 38-year old, who cannot be named by court order, was arraigned before magistrate Audrey Demicoli and pleaded not guilty to charges of rape and several unwanted sexual advances in recent months.

Requesting bail for the accused, defence lawyer Veronique Dalli told the court the man and his wife were in the process of separating but were still living in the same house and sleeping in the same bed.

The two typically slept nude, she said, and the sexual encounter over which the rape had been alleged had begun consensually, but the woman later told police she had not wished to continue and had attempted to push the man off her.

The defence said internal and external medical examinations had found no marks of a struggle, and that the woman’s testimony had contained inconsistencies. After the sexual encounter, the woman had gone to sleep next to her husband, the defence said.

However, the prosecution, led by Inspector Paula Ciantar, said the woman had not consented to sex with the man at any stage, and that she had said no from the start. The prosecution said the incident was one of several dating back months.

The magistrate denied the request for bail and ordered the man to be remanded in custody on the basis that the alleged victim had yet to testify.