A Colombian resident in Madrid has been sentenced to six years in jail after he was found guilty of conspiring to deal in cocaine.

John Faber Uruena Molina, 34, was also fined €10,000 and ordered to pay the court expenses, which amounted to €2,483.

The accused was first arraigned in August 13, 2013, after the drug squad police apprehended a drug mule, Gloria Stella Vargas Pena, who identified the accused as the mastermind.

After attending several court sittings, the accused disappeared in 2015. A European Arrest Warrant was issued and the accused eventually turned himself in to the Spanish police in June 2015 and was extradited to Malta.

Magistrate Neville Camilleri heard how Ms Vargas Pena and two other men known as Ivan Alexander and Johanni were arrested at the airport following spot checks. The latter two were eventually released.

During a strip search, Ms Vargas Pena removed a capsule from her intimate part containing some 200 grams of cocaine. She told the police she was meant to meet a person wearing a blue top and a white pair of trousers in front of Burger King in Paceville where she was to hand him the drugs.

She testified to knowing a woman by the name of Luz Stella Oyola Lozada, who described herself as the accused’s wife, who had set everything up from Madrid and who had booked her flights and hotel. This woman provided Ms Vargas Pena with the drugs and, in return for her efforts, she was to be paid €1,000.

Meanwhile, the accused denied knowing Ms Vargas Pena, even though she had testified to meeting him. The accused insisted that Luz Stella was not his wife and that she was married to his friend Johanni – however, Facebook photos depicted the two kissing.

The court noted that the accused could not be considered a credible witness. The check-in ticket of Ms Vargas Pena was numbered 134, while that of the accused was 135. Additionally, his return ticket – on the same flight to Spain – was numbered 157 while that of the accused was 158.

“The court asks: is this a coincidence?” Magistrate Camilleri questioned, also pointing out that “coincidentally” the accused was wearing the exact same clothing as described by the witness.

It was clear, the court held, that there was a well-developed and thought-out plan to import drugs into Malta, including the planning of such details as who should meet whom, what clothing should be worn, how they were to meet and what payment Ms Vargas Pena was to receive in return.

Police Inspector Nikolai Sant prosecuted.

 

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