Updated 8.10pm

32-year-old drug kingpin Jordan Azzopardi, who lives in Madliena, was arrested by the Drug Squad on Friday for cocaine possession and trafficking.

The police said they followed a BMW in Madliena at 3.15pm after receiving information that its driver was in possession of drugs.

Azzopardi's identity, confirmed by Times of Malta, was first revealed by Malta Today.

The police said that as soon as he realised that the police were following him, Azzopardi started speeding and driving dangerously in a bid to escape, hitting some cars in the process.

But the police soon circled and arrested him finding cocaine in his possession.

An inquiry is being held. The police are investigating.

In December, Azzopardi, who goes by the nickname the El Chapo of Malta, was given a seven-month jail term for a 2015 assault that left a man grievously injured.  

The man was hunted down, beaten up in public and had his clothes ripped apart before he finally managed to get away, bruised and battered, before he could be dragged into Azzopardi’s car.

He was given bail the previousAugust for a litany of charges related to running a large-scale drug trafficking operation, money laundering and counterfeit cash.

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