A passenger leaving for Libya was caught with undeclared cash and an expired visa as he was preparing to board a flight out of the country on Saturday.

The man was heading to Mitiga when anti-money laundering officials who were screening passengers at the airport’s departure lounge had their suspicions raised.

When asked how much cash he was carrying, the man first said €10,000 before quickly changing his answer to US$6,000.

That led to a search of the passenger and his belongings, with Customs officials finding a total of €18,903. He was also found to be overstaying his period in Malta, with his visa having expired earlier in February.

€10,000 of the cash – the legal limit – was returned to the man, who was placed under arrest and will be arraigned in the coming days. The rest of the money was seized by Customs.

This was the second such seizure by Customs officials in as many days. On Friday, authorities also caught a Turkey-bound passenger with €18,000 in undeclared cash. 

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