Two men have been refused bail after separate police drug finds during the weekend.

In the first case, officers found 1.75kg of cannabis, 19 grams of cocaine, seven grams of MDMA as well as a number of empty sachets in an apartment in Sliema on Saturday.

The tenant, Darko Smiljanic, a 31-year old labourer, taxi driver and construction worker from Serbia, was arrested and taken to court on Monday.

He pleaded not guilty to dealing in cannabis as well as possessing cannabis, cocaine and MDMA under circumstances denoting that the drugs were not intended for his own personal use.

The offences were further aggravated by the fact that they allegedly took place within 100 metres of a place where young people habitually meet.

The prosecution said that police had found a substantial amount of cannabis which the suspect claimed to have acquired for his personal use.

Prosecuting inspector Steven-Ryan Micallef said that there were more than five blocks, the size of which could simply indicate that the accused sold the drug in large amounts.

A request for bail was objected to not only in view of the gravity of the charges and the early stage of investigations but also because the accused lacked firm ties in Malta.

His lawyer countered that the accused had been living in Malta for six years, with his partner and two young kids who also attended a local school.

Moreover, the accused had fully cooperated with the police, the lawyer noted.

Magistrate Ian Farrugia turned down the request for bail citing the gravity of the charges and the man’s lack of ties which posed a real and tangible risk to the proper administration of justice.

Lawyers Franco Debono, Marion Camilleri and Francesca Zarb assisted the accused.

Drugs found during police roadblock

In the second case,  a 25-year old delivery man was found in possession of 59 sachets of drugs when stopped at a police roadblock, also on Saturday.

Charlon Theuma was stopped while driving in Qormi when his suspicious manoeuvres caught the attention of police patrol officers, on the lookout for the man following a tip-off.

A search of the suspect’s car yielded the 59 sachets, 11 of which allegedly contained heroin, a smaller number were filled with cannabis while the rest contained cocaine, the prosecution explained in court.

More cannabis was allegedly discovered at the suspect’s home.

Theuma was arrested and arraigned on Monday. He pleaded not guilty to possession of the drugs under circumstances denoting that they were not for his own personal use as well as relapsing.

A request for bail was objected to by prosecuting inspector Steven-Ryan Micallef who argued that the drugs had been distributed into sachets, allegedly ready for trafficking.

Moreover, the accused had a colourful criminal record and had been convicted of a similar offence in 2015, argued the prosecution, noting further the possible risk of tampering with evidence.

Defence lawyers argued that the accused was presumed innocent and that the amount of drugs found was not so large.

However Magistrate Ian Farrugia, turned down the request for bail after taking note of the circumstances and gravity of the charges, the risk of tampering with evidence, the man’s tainted record and the fact that investigations were still at a premature stage.

Lawyers Franco Debono, Amadeus Cachia and Francesca Zarb were defence counsel.