Inmates at Corradino Correctional Facility called alleged drug kingpin Jordan Azzopardi prior to his arrest, a court was told on Wednesday.

Prosecuting Inspector Mark Anthony Mercieca presented the court with an official copy of phone logs of calls made by inmates to Mr Azzopardi, explaining that the data had been verified with prison authorities. 

Answering questions by defence lawyer Arthur Azzopardi, Inspector Mercieca said that call recordings from prison were never cancelled and had “no expiry date” so long as they were done through prison phone booths.

Mr Azzopardi stands accused of having run a large-scale drug operation.

Villa rented for €3,500 monthly

During Wednesday’s hearing, Mark Ciantar, a sales representative for the letting company which had leased out the Ta’ Liberat farmhouse to the accused, testified that he had showed the property to Mr Azzopardi but had not been involved in the lease agreement.

The villa had been rented for a monthly payment of €3,500 which always reached the company office in cash.

The witness could not tell who actually paid but said that he had met Mr Azzopardi when there was an issue over late payments of the rent.

Metal tanks and traces of heroin

A sergeant from the Drug Squad, Johann Micallef, recalled his involvement in four drug raids targeting properties in Birkirkara, Gżira, Marsa and Pieta’. In all these cases, they found similar circumstances, with metal doors, stone barricades and acid tanks with traces of suspected heroin around the container openings.

All premises were monitored using CCTV cameras, the officer explained.

Recalling the day of Mr Azzopardi’s arrest and the search at the St Paul’s Bay farmhouse the following day, the officer said that various bullets of different gauges had been discovered during the search, together with five Apple laptops and three Iphones, all brand new and sealed, tucked away in one of the bedrooms.

Ammonia bottles and other drug paraphernalia had also been discovered in the search.

Bail request

At the end of the sitting, the court, presided over by magistrate Doreen Clarke, heard submissions on bail in respect of Mr Azzopardi, with defence lawyer Alfred Abela questioning the validity of the man’s continued arrest at this stage, given that civilian witnesses had testified or had their testimony preserved in the records of the inquiry.

There was no real fear of absconding nor tampering with evidence, said Dr Abela, insisting that both local and EU jurisprudence made arrest the exception and not the norm.

However, inspector Mercieca rebutted that there were other civilians to testify and the gravity of the crime was very real, adding that the prosecution needed more time to proceed.

The court declared that it would decide upon the issue of bail in chambers.

The case was adjourned to next week.