Man spends 34 hours in custody over knuckleduster in luggage
Airport security spotted the weapon in the man’s checked-in luggage
A traveller from Tel Aviv spent 34 hours under arrest after a knuckleduster was spotted in his checked-in luggage.
Dekel Ovadia, 24, from Israel was arraigned under arrest before magistrate Claire Stafrace Zammit this morning, accused of importing arms prohibited under the Arms Act.
Ovadia, who arrived on a flight yesterday, pleaded guilty to the charge.
“It’s a knuckleduster not a missile,” argued his lawyer, David Gatt, adding that the man had travelled with the weapon around various EU states without any problems, only to end up arrested in Malta.
The court fined the man €695.
Inspector Darren Buhagiar prosecuted.