A Syrian man who was arrested on Christmas Eve upon disembarking from the catamaran with some 48kg of water pipe tobacco stacked inside his van has been granted bail.

Al-Abbar Baraa Mohammed Al Maamun, 31, was stopped by Customs officers last Sunday as he drove his van off the catamaran upon its arrival from Sicily.

Although he told officers that he had nothing to declare, a search inside his van yielded a number of bags containing water pipe tobacco.

The man was arrested and was on Wednesday escorted to court where he pleaded not guilty to having knowingly held in his possession the 48kg of tobacco, the importation of which is prohibited or restricted in Malta.

The prosecution declared that the value of the product was estimated to be around €1,344, while excise duty, import duty and VAT amounted to €1,747, €1,006 and €737 respectively.

Both the merchandise as well as the van used for its transportation, have been seized by customs authorities.

The court, presided over by magistrate Aaron Bugeja, upheld a request for bail against a personal guarantee of €20,000 and under condition of signing the bail book on a daily basis.

Inspector Priscilla Caruana Lee prosecuted. Lawyer Jason Grima was defence counsel.