A man was jailed for nine months and fined €500 for trafficking cannabis almost a decade ago.

The duration of the proceedings were commented upon by Magistrate Lawrence Quintano, who pointed out that it took the defence team two years to produce evidence to support their case.

On October 24, 1999, Mario Attard, 41, was found at home with seven small packets of cannabis resin wrapped in foil.

In a police statement, Mr Attard claimed that the cannabis was all his and that all 17 grammes he had bought for €163 had only been in his possession for one day.

A client, Mario Micallef, who had bought the drug twice from Mr Attard testified that he would meet a man at the Tequila Bar where he was supplied with the substance.

The magistrate said he did not believe Mr Attard's claim that the drugs were for his exclusive use, especially since the pieces were all wrapped up in foil and the amount between one packet and another varied slightly.