A Nigerian who at first was thought to be a drug trafficker was caught at the airport on Thursday in possession of three passports and resident cards that were not his.

Armstrong Omenese, 30, allegedly brought the documents from Spain to sell them to illegal immigrants here, police sources said adding that he was originally stopped after it was thought he was a drug trafficker. Police Inspector Edel Mary Camilleri told the court that two of the resident cards were false.

In a statement to the police, Mr Omenese confessed to bringing in the passports on the instructions of another person in Spain, police sources said. However, he opted to plead not guilty to the charges.

Shortly after giving his particulars to the court, Magistrate Giovanni Grixti asked the accused what he wanted to plead and the accused replied he did not understand what was going on. As Mr Omenese tried to explain what had happened, legal aid lawyer Patrick Valentino told the court his client wanted to plead not guilty to forgery, making use of a travel document belonging to someone else and receiving the documents to use them illegally.

Since he has no ties with the island, the court remanded him in custody.

The case continues.

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