Around a kilo of “explosive powder” was discovered in a garage beneath a popular Gozitan nightclub and theatre complex.

The combustible powder, believed to be a mix of sulphates, was found by police in a garage-turned workshop owned by the La Stella Philharmonic Society on Friday night.

Two men, cousins and fireworks aficionados, were arrested after police received a tip that explosives, meant to be used in firework preparation, were being stored in a garage in a residential area.

The garage is located in a bustling part of the Gozitan capital on Giuseppe Giardini Street, just a few paces from popular toy shop, Kidzland.

Paul Cassar, the president of the La Stella band club, insisted that no fireworks were being produced in the garage and that the two men who had been arrested were simply storing powder there. He said the two used the garage to prepare the outer casings for fireworks, which they would then fill in a licensed fireworks factory in Malta.