Four men were on Thursday separately charged over a €2 million 15-kilo cocaine haul on Tuesday from a garage in St Paul’s Bay on Tuesday.

Mark Andrew Muscat, 43, from San Ġwann, Gordon Schembri, 37, from Floriana, as well as Italians Alfio Rosario Cosimo Aiello, 31, and Santo Benito Reina, 33, were all charged with involvement in a drug trafficking organisation, procuring cocaine and possessing the drug under circumstances denoting that it was not intended solely for personal use. 

Schembri was also charged with driving a Honda in a reckless, dangerous and careless manner, refusing to obey legitimate police orders, as well as committing the offences during the operative term of a suspended sentence.

He was charged further with breaching three bail decrees and relapsing. 

Prosecuting Inspector Mark Anthony Mercieca gave an overview of the dynamics of the arrests. 

On Tuesday, police were patrolling the area of St Paul’s Bay following a tip off about a suspected drug deal that was to take place at Buġibba. 

They were on the lookout for Schembri who was suspected of involvement in that deal. 

That was when they spotted a red motorcycle, registered in the name of Schembri’s mother, being driven by a third party.

That third party was Muscat. 

The motorbike stopped near a Fiat with Italian number plates. 

A man stepped out of the vehicle and handed a yellow bag to Muscat. 

That was when the police intervened, moving in to arrest the men and seizing the sizeable bag inside which they found five blocks of cocaine, weighing five kilos. 

More drugs were found inside a garage accessed by Muscat. 

The total amount of cocaine seized in the haul was 15 kilos but there appeared to be another 17 kilos allegedly involved in previous transactions, explained Mercieca. 

Following those first arrests, Schembri himself was intercepted shortly afterwards, also in the Buġibba area.

He was riding a motorbike but fled when he sensed police presence.

He was subsequently arrested at his girlfriend’s residence in Gżira. 

All four pleaded not guilty. First to be arraigned was Muscat, whose lawyer, Edmond Cuschieri, requested bail, arguing that the accused had already released a sworn statement and had cooperated with police. 

However, the prosecution objected to the request not only because of the gravity of the case but also because investigations were still ongoing, with other suspects currently under arrest or on police bail. 

Civilian witnesses were also still to testify and the fear of tampering with evidence was real. 

After hearing further submissions, the court, presided over by Magistrate Rachel Montebello, turned down the request since it was not satisfied that if granted bail, the accused might not tamper with evidence and interfere in the course of justice. 

Upon another request by the defence for the accused to be detained at the Forensic Unit, the court recommended that the director of prisons was to assess the accused so as to ensure that he was detained under the most appropriate conditions.

Aiello and Reina, both from Catania, were allegedly the persons in the Fiat model. 

Their lawyers made no request for bail at arraignment stage. 

Schembri, who was arraigned last, opted for his right to silence and answered none of the court deputy’s questions about his personal details, stating solely that he was pleading “not guilty” to the charges. 

The court upheld the prosecution’s request for a freezing order in respect of each of the accused, save for the annual statutory allowance of €13, 976. 

No request for bail was made in Schembri’s case and he was also remanded in custody.

Inspectors Mark Anthony Mercieca and Jonathan Pace prosecuted.

Lawyer Edmond Cuschieri was counsel to Muscat. Lawyers Franco Debono and Marion Camilleri were counsel to Aiello. Lawyer Stafano Filletti was counsel to Reina. Lawyer Kathleen Calleja Grima was counsel to Schembri.