­Charged over half a kilo of Meow Meow

A man from Alabama in the US and a woman from Romania have been charged with trying to traffic half a kilo of the party drug Meow Meow, which was only made illegal in September.

The two were arrested when the police intercepted a parcel with the drug, known scientifically as mephedrone, which was addressed to their Attard apartment.

The man, Rodney Andrew Molt, is 24 years old while Anna-Maria Beatrice Ciocanel is 22.

The packet, split into four plastic bags, had just arrived on the island from Prague in the Czech Republic on Friday. The two were arrested on the same day, charged yesterday and denied bail.

The police also searched their apartment and found what they said were ecstasy pills and cocaine. Mr Molt was separately accused with the possession of these drugs.

The drug is sold over the internet as plant food “not for human consumption”. It had been banned in the UK last April after a series of deaths were linked to it. It had previously been banned in most Scandinavian countries. Then in September the government also banned it locally.

The drug comes in the form of white crystals or powder that are either snorted or mixed into drinks. Its effects have been compared to those of both ecstasy and cocaine. It gained popularity primarily because it was legal and, therefore, comparatively very cheap.