Man, woman charged over possession of 850g cocaine and €65,000 in cash

A 33-year-old man from Marsascala and a 42-year-old woman from Hamrun have been charged with aggravated possession of cocaine and money laundering, after they were arrested in Marsascala on Thursday.

The arrests came after the police had received a tip-off about drug dealing inside a block of apartments in Marsaskala and had staked out the location, the court was told.

In separate arraignments on Saturday, Charmain Bezzina and Ian Zammit appeared in the dock before magistrate Josette Demicoli.

The two were accused of being in possession of cocaine in circumstances which denoted that it was not solely for personal use, possession of cocaine and recidivism.

Police Inspector Alfredo Mangion, prosecuting, told the court that police had received a tip off about drug dealing at the location. Four officers had approached Bezzina while she was in her car after leaving the apartment. 

She was found to be carrying three sachets of white powder, suspected to be cocaine, with a further 100g of the substance being found inside her car.

Zammit had also been stopped and searched by officers monitoring the block of apartments and was found to be carrying a packet of cocaine. The man told the officers that he had obtained the drugs from an apartment inside the block, claiming to be the tenant’s partner. But no drugs were found when the police searched the property he indicated and the tenant told the police that she had no connection to the man.

Further investigations reveled that the man lived in a different apartment, a subsequent search of which returned 750g of cocaine and some €65,000 in cash. Zammit alone was also charged with money laundering and breaching two sets of bail conditions.

The prosecution requested a freezing order over the assets of the accused in both cases. Both accused pleaded not guilty to the charges brought against them.

Lawyer Franco Debono appearing for Zammit together with lawyer Marion Camilleri, requested bail stressing that there are no civilian witnesses set to testify against his client. He highlighted that the testimony of the woman whose house was searched, would not have any bearing of the case since she did not know the accused.

Inspector Mangion objected to the request noting how the accused had tried to mislead the police by involving a third party who had no connection to the case. 

The court, presided over by magistrate Josette Demicoli, turned down the man’s request for bail, citing the risk of tampering with evidence.

The court however granted Bezzina bail, releasing her from arrest against a €1,000 deposit and €9,000 personal guarantee. The court ordered the woman to sign her bail book three times a week and observe a curfew.

Lawyers David Gatt and Ishmael Psaila appeared for Bezzina.