A husband found guilty of sexually assaulting his wife faces sentence tomorrow after his appeal was dismissed in Supreme Court.

The 28-year-old, who cannot be named for legal reasons, was found guilty by Acting Senior Magistrate Carlisle Greaves in December 2002 for the attack in the couple's Devonshire home a year earlier.

Chief Justice Austin Ward said the magistrate had found there was an argument when the husband came home at 5 a.m. and wife accused him of being with another woman.

The appellant asked for sex, hugged and held her and then grabbed her shorts when she tried to leave the bedroom.

He later approached her again as she sat on the bed.

Mr. Justice Ward said: "He again tried to hug her eliciting from her the question if he was not getting enough then why did he not go back to where he had just come from?

"He tried to pull down her pants and underpants. She positioned her legs under the bed in an escapist manoeuvre.

"These are all findings of fact which the learned magistrate could reasonably made on the evidence before him. I do not accept the criticism that in doing so the magistrate placed the evidence of the complainant on a pedestal."

The husband's lawyer Victoria Pearman argued that Mr. Greaves did not give enough weight to his evidence and had not looked for corroboration where the man and wife contradicted each other as it was easy for a woman with an axe to grind to accuse a man of a sexual offence.

Mr. Justice Ward said the law did not require corroboration so the magistrate did not have a duty to look for it.

In his judgment Mr. Justice Ward continued: "The assault element of the charge was established out of the mouth of the defendant himself.

"The sexual ingredient was found to be established after the magistrate had accepted that the appellant had expressed in words his desire to have his wife in a sexual context, had attempted to remove her clothing and was seen to have an erection."

Mr. Justice Ward said Ms Pearman had argued said the complainant had cut off her own shorts and thus removed that protection and she had grabbed his testicles making it impossible for sex to occur.

And she had said the husband had the scissors in his hand but had not used them.

Mr. Justice Ward said these were mitigating factors but did not disprove the case.

And he dismissed claims that evidence of a sexual assault had not been established. He said the evidence supported that.

Mr. Justice Ward said: "The learned magistrate found that the victim gave a very clear concise story and was a credible witness of the truth. That finding should not be disturbed."

The husband was bailed to return to magistrate's court for sentence tomorrow.