Man pleads not guilty to heroin possession

A 25-year-old man from Qormi was this morning granted bail against a deposit of €1,500 and a personal guarantee of €5,000 after pleading not guilty to being in possession of around 500 grammes of heroin that was not for his exclusive use.

The case was in August 2007.

Herman Mc Kay was also charged with relapsing and committing a crime during the operative period of a suspended sentence.

Defence lawyer Franco Debono contested the fact that his client was charged in court under arrest and detained at the police station for almost 48 hours when he could have been summoned.

He pointed out that the incident took place two years ago and that the police had no difficulty in finding Mr Mc Kay when they arrested him on Tuesday.

But presiding magistrate Audrey Demicoli decided that the arrest was valid.