Man caught picking up drugs he had hidden in the garden of a car park in Paceville

A man who was arrested after being seen picking up drugs hidden in the garden of a Paceville car park has pleaded guilty to related charges.

Hussein Abdullahi Jama, 28, a Somaliland resident of Marsa, was arrested on Monday before Judge Donatella Frendo Dimech on charges of possession of cannabis and cocaine under circumstances suggesting that the drugs were not intended exclusively for his personal consumption.

Inspector Cremona told the court that on 7 September a police patrol was operating in Paceville in an area known for drug trafficking.

The 28-year-old man was arrested in St. Julian's on Saturday evening on suspicion of drug trafficking after a police patrol noticed him behaving strangely and apparently searching for something in the vegetation at the edge of a car park in Triq San Ġorg.

After observing the man picking up items from the ground and putting them in his shirt, officers approached him more closely. The sight of the officers obviously frightened the man and he began to act even more suspiciously.

Police stopped the man and searched him, finding a black bag containing 38 bags of a white substance, which the suspect later confirmed was cocaine, ready for sale, as well as 450 euros in 20-euro and 10-euro notes.

The police also found some bags of cannabis in the vegetation where he was picking something up. During a subsequent search of his house, notes and drug paraphernalia were discovered. According to the inspector, these included several mobile phones, empty bags and a pipe.

The prosecution told the court that Jama claimed in his statement that he had merely come across the drugs outside.

In view of his guilty plea, the court adjourned the trial for sentencing.