A fisherman and his friend have each been jailed for 16 years and fined €40,000, having admitted to the importation of 18 kilos of cannabis resin aboard a fishing boat last summer.

Keith Barbara, 30, of Vittoriosa, and Silvio Apap, 37, of Xgħajra pleaded guilty to importing the drugs aboard Mr Barbara’s boat – the Madonna Taż-Żejt – last June.

The police had found the drugs hidden in a cooler bag when they searched the boat in Marsaxlokk.

The two men also admitted to conspiring to deal in drugs and being in possession of cannabis in circumstances denoting it was not for their personal use.

Mr Justice Michael Mallia, sitting in the Criminal Court, ordered the confiscation of the items used to carry out the crime.

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