A yacht suspected of having been used to secretly ferry migrants from Turkey to Europe had its interior surfaces wiped clean before police arrived on the scene, a court heard today. 

The Vino Tinto II was seized by local authorities last week after a European Arrest Warrant was issued for three sailors wanted in Sicily to face charges of human trafficking. 

The three Ukrainians, Ilyya Iosifov, 28, Valentyn Mykhenvych, 25, and Roman Koloshva, 28, were arrested by local authorities after being intercepted by Armed Forces of Malta personnel.  

The court, presided over by magistrate Donatella Frendo Dimech, heard one scene of crime officer testify how he had been dispatched to the Valletta deep water quay where the yacht is currently berthed. While taking photos of the vessel, it was evident that the whole interior had been wiped down. In fact, there were wipe marks on the surfaces. Some fingerprints had been found on the mast, the expert declared.

Italian authorities have applied to take custody of the Vino Tinto II, and both prosecution and defence agreed with the request. The court laid down the strict condition that it would have to be returned with its entire contents should the extradition request be rejected. For this reason, the court ordered the drawing up of an inventory of all the vessel's contents within 24 hours.

Lawyers representing the three sailors are contesting the legality of the men's arrest, arguing that the men had actually been arrested two days prior to the issuing of a European Arrest Warrant and therefore in breach of the men's rights.

The prosecution rebutted that although the AFM had stopped the yacht after being alerted about its suspected involvement in human trafficking, the three sailors had been arrested because of irregularities in the vessel's documentation.

The extradition case continues next week.

Lawyers Arthur Azzopardi, Alfred Abela and Mario Mifsud were defence counsel.
Inspector Jeffrey Scicluna prosecuted.