Updated 12.30 pm 

A 22-year-old man was charged with the possession of cocaine, heroin and cannabis with the intent to sell – after he was stopped at a police roadblock on Sunday.

Kyle Pace, from Valletta, pleaded not guilty to the possession of the drugs on and before November 17.

He was also charged with tampering with evidence and driving a car without a licence or insurance cover.

In a statement earlier on Tuesday, police said the incident happened in Triq Giuseppe Garibaldi in Paola, where they were conducting routine traffic stops in the area. 

Officers on the scene said that as soon as the man noticed the police, he reversed into the entryway of a field and tried to drive away. 

He was stopped before he got the chance to do so and police say the man told them that he did not have a driving license. 

With reasonable suspicion, police searched the car and found two packets of a substance suspected to be cannabis grass and an unspecified amount of money in cash. 

When officers were about the search the man's person, police say that he reached into his trousers, pulled out two bags that had been hidden there and tried to dispose of them in a nearby well. 

The bags were immediately recovered by the police and inside they found several sachets filled with white and brown substances, suspected to be cocaine and heroin. 

In court, lawyer Godwin Cini, prosecuting on behalf of the Attorney General’s office, explained that Pace was arrested on Sunday after police stopped and searched his vehicle when he tried to drive away from a routine roadblock in Triq Giuseppe Garibaldi, Paola, at about 3pm.

Magistrate Yana Micallef Stafrace ordered a freezing order of Pace’s assets. He was remanded in custody.

Lawyer Godwin Cini from the Attorney General’s office assisted police inspector Kurt Farrugia in leading the prosecution. 

Lawyer Amadeus Cachia represented the accused.